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MEN,  WOMEN 
& MANNERS 
IN  COLONIAL 
TIMES 

* 

FOURTH  EDITION 


OTHER  BOOKS  BY  MR.  FISHER 

¥ 

THE  MAKING  OF  PENNSYLVANIA 


PENNSYLVANIA:  COLONY  AND  COMMON- 
WEALTH 

THE  EVOLUTION  OF  THE  CONSTITUTION 
OF  THE  UNITED  STATES 


MEN,  WOMEN  , , 
1}  0 MANNERS  |j 

y in  colonial]! 

i|  TIMES  • • • • I 

SYDNEY  GEO.  FISHER  \ 


ILLUSTRATED  WITH  PHOTOGRAVURES 
AND  WITH  DECORATIO  S BY 


MEN,  WOMEN 
& MANNERS 
IN  COLONIAL 
TIMES  • • • • 


BY 

SYDNEY  GEO.  FISHER 

ILLUSTRATED  WITH  PHOTOGRAVURES 
AND  WITH  DECORATIONS  BY 
EDWARD  STRATTON  HOLLOWAY 

VOL.  II 


PHILADELPHIA  fcf  LONDON 
J.  B.  LIPPINCOTT  COMPANY 

1902 


Copyright,  1897 

BY 

J.  B.  Lippincott  Company 


F 5 3 (o  /\ 

V- 

TABLE  OF  CONTENTS 

VOL.  II 

¥ 

CHAPTER  VIII 

Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 9 

CHAPTER  IX 

Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake  . . 147 

CHAPTER  X 

Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 251 

CHAPTER  XI 

Bankrupts,  Spaniards,  and  Mulberry-Trees  . . 347 


5 


LIST  OF  PHOTOGRAVURES 


VOL.  II 

¥ 


Roger  Morris  House 

High  Bridge,  New  York.  Built  1764. 

Frontispiece 

Van  Cortlandt  Manor 

Croton,  New  York.  Built  1748. 

...  99 

Whitehall 

Annapolis,  Maryland.  Built  1764. 

St.  James’s  Church  

Goose  Creek,  South  Carolina.  Built  1711 
7 


o'Ou  e r 


MANHATTAN  AND  THE  TAPPAN  ZEE 

JN  the  days  of  Columbus  and  Verrazzano  the 
shores  of  New  York  Harbor  were  shadowed 
by  goodly  oak-trees  and  inhabited  by  swarms 
of  red  men,  who  dressed  in  garments  made  of 
the  feathers  of  birds,  with  strings  of  copper 
round  their  necks.  They  rushed  to  the  shore 
with  delight  to  welcome  the  first  white  men, 
“raising  loud  shouts  of  admiration  and  showing 
us  where  we  could  most  securely  land  with  our 
boat.” 

They  must  have  seemed  comical  enough, 
these  red  men  in  their  feathers  looking  like  half- 
picked  chickens  ; and  the  Dutch  who  succeeded 
them  were  also  funny  fellows. 

In  the  vast  sweep  of  the  coast  of  North  and 
South  America  for  ten  thousand  miles  along 
the  Atlantic  there  is  no  spot  equal  to  this 
narrow  entrance  between  high  hills  which  now 
9 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

opens  into  the  bay  and  harbor  of  New  York 
with  its  cities  and  teeming  millions.  Spaniards, 
Portuguese,  Dutchmen,  Frenchmen,  and  English- 
men were  searching  from  Greenland  to  Cape 
Horn  for  gold  and  the  passage  to  China.  The 
Spaniards  robbed  the  temples  of  Mexico  and 
Peru,  and  spread  themselves  along  the  West  In- 
dies, the  Amazon,  and  the  Paraguay,  laughing  at 
the  Frenchman  struggling  with  the  ice  and  snow 
of  the  St.  Lawrence,  and  the  Englishman  in 
the  swamps  of  Virginia.  Each  believed  he  had 
the  best ; but  the  nation  that  secured  that  narrow 
entrance  where  the  red  men  dressed  in  feathers 
would  have  it  all. 

Fortunately  for  mankind  and  civilization,  Co- 
lumbus discovered  only  the  West  Indies  and 
South  America,  and  left  the  North  American 
continent  free  from  the  curse  of  the  Spaniard. 
If  when  he  set  out  from  Palos  he  had  adhered 
striftly  to  his  theory  and  steered  due  west,  he 
would  have  reached  some  point  on  the  coast  of 
North  Carolina  or  Virginia,  Spanish  migration 
and  conquest  would  have  followed  him,  and  the 
history  of  the  United  States  would  be  very  dif- 
ferent from  what  it  is.  But  from  Palos  he  sailed 
far  to  the  southwest  to  the  Canary  Islands ; 
thence  he  took  a westward  course,  and  if  he 
had  maintained  it  he  would  still  have  reached 
the  North  American  continent  at  some  point  in 


10 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

Florida  or  Georgia.  But  when  near  the  New 
World  he  followed  the  flight  of  birds,  and  sailed 
again  towards  the  southwest,  which  took  him 
and  Spanish  civilization  to  the  West  Indies, 
Mexico,  and  South  America. 

He  never  saw  the  North  American  conti- 
nent, and  died  without  knowing  of  its  existence. 
The  birds  had  shaped  a mighty  destiny.  In 
1497,  five  years  after  Columbus’s  first  voyage, 
John  and  Sebastian  Cabot  discovered  North 
America  for  England,  an  event  of  vaster  sig- 
nificance and  benefit  in  the  progress  of  man- 
kind and  more  worthy  to  be  celebrated  than 
the  accident  which  inflifted  Spanish  cruelty, 
rapacity,  and  failure  on  the  continent  of  South 
America. 

A hundred  years  after  the  Cabots  had  given 
North  America  to  Great  Britain,  the  Dutch, 
having  freed  themselves  from  the  dominion  of 
Spain,  became  enterprising  explorers  ; and  Henry 
Hudson,  an  Englishman  in  their  employ,  entered 
both  the  Delaware  and  the  Hudson  River  in  the 
year  1609.  By  the  merest  good  luck,  England 
had  only  two  years  before,  in  1607,  taken  advan- 
tage of  the  discovery  of  the  Cabots  to  establish 
the  Virginia  colony  at  Jamestown,  and  had  made 
a grant  to  the  Virginia  company  of  all  the  land 
from  South  Carolina  to  Halifax.  This  saved 
her  title  to  the,  continent  under  the  discovery  of 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

the  Cabots,  which  might  have  lapsed  from  failure 
to  make  a settlement  and  take  aftual  possession. 
The  Dutch  were  just  too  late.  But,  relying  on 
Hudson’s  expedition,  they  claimed  a right  to  all 
the  territory  near  the  two  great  rivers  into 
which  he  had  sailed. 

That  the  English  title  was  superior  to  the 
Dutch  is  now  no  longer  doubted,  and  the 
question  has  been  authoritatively  settled  by  the 
courts  of  New  York.  It  seems  strange  that  the 
ancient  Dutch  occupation  and  the  voyages  of  the 
Cabots  and  Hudson  should  become  praftical 
questions  of  modern  times  in  a litigation  of  the 
New  York  elevated  railways. 

But  even  the  law  must  have  its  romance,  and 
in  1889  some  owners  of  property  on  the 
Bowery  brought  a suit  for  damages  against  the 
Elevated  Railway  Company  for  cutting  off  the 
light,  air,  and  access  to  their  buildings.  The 
railway  replied  that  the  Bowery  was  an  old 
Dutch  street  which  had  been  laid  out  and  prop- 
erty sold  upon  it  when  the  Dutch  nation  had 
lawful  jurisdiction  in  New  York,  and  under  the 
Dutch  law  there  could  be  no  damages  for  cut- 
ting off  light,  air,  and  access.  But  the  court 
decided  that  the  Dutch  had  never  had  lawful 
possession  of  New  York  ; their  occupation  was 
a mere  trespass  and  intrusion  on  the  English 
title,  which  had  originated  in  the  discovery  of 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

the  Cabots,  and  had  been  perfefted  by  the  grant 
and  settlement  of  Virginia.* 

In  the  year  1609,  however,  England  had  not 
fully  awakened  to  her  colonial  opportunities, 
and  allowed  the  Dutch  to  occupy  the  Hudson 
and  the  Delaware,  and  the  French  the  St.  Law- 
rence, without  opposition.  Against  these  two 
powerful  nations,  occupying  important  points 
on  the  continent,  the  British  had  only  the 
miserable  little  colony  in  Virginia,  dying  of 
fever  and  ague. 

The  Dutch  established  themselves  on  the 
shores  of  the  Hudson  and  the  Delaware  with  a 
vigor  which  seemed  to  show  that  they  would  be 
the  rulers  of  America.  Brave  little  Holland  had 
at  that  time  only  about  two  millions  of  people 
living  at  the  mouth  of  the  river  Rhine,  on  a 
morass  they  had  saved  from  the  water  by  dikes, 
which  they  watched  day  and  night.  Their  way 
was  in  the  sea  and  their  paths  in  the  great 
waters.  They  built  a thousand  new  ships  every 
year,  and  the  commerce  of  the  world  was  at 
their  feet. 

At  first  their  purpose  at  Manhattan  and  on 
the  Delaware  was  merely  to  colled!  furs  from 
the  Indians,  and  they  made  no  settlements. 


* Mortimer  vs.  N.  Y.  Elevated  R.  R.,  6 N.  Y. 
Supplement,  898. 


13 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

They  had  not  the  strong  instinft  of  the  English 
for  establishing  themselves  in  a new  country. 
They  were  traders,  and  their  idea  of  coloniza- 
tion was  merely  to  assist  the  commerce  of  Hol- 
land, and  not  to  build  a new  empire.  They 
pushed  their  explorations  rapidly,  but  only 
where  they  could  follow  the  water,  and  they 
made  few  attempts  to  penetrate  inland. 

Adriaen  Block’s  ship,  the  Tiger,  was  burnt 
at  Manhattan;  but  in  the  winter  of  1613  he 
built  a small  vessel,  forty-four  feet  long,  called 
the  Onrust,  or  Restless,  with  which  he  sailed 
into  Long  Island  Sound.  The  whirlpool  in  the 
East  River  he  named  Hellegat,  from  a branch 
of  the  river  Scheldt,  in  Zealand,  and  passed  on 
as  far  eastward  as  Martha’s  Vineyard,  naming 
the  Connecticut  the  Versch,  or  Fresh  River, 
calling  Narragansett  Bay,  Nassau,  and  leaving  his 
own  name  to  Block  Island.  Cornelius  Mey  ex- 
plored the  Delaware  and  gave  his  name  to  one 
of  its  capes. 

The  company  of  merchants  who  had  been 
given  by  the  States  General  of  Holland  the  ex- 
clusive right  of  trading  in  New  Netherlands,  as 
their  American  possessions  were  called,  had  no 
political  power  like  the  English  colonizing  com- 
panies. They  were  merely  armed  traders,  who 
occupied  the  country  for  the  purpose  of  securing 
its  furs  and  products.  But  every  English  com- 
14 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

pany  was  given  a distinft  political  government, 
and  this  difference  is  significant  of  the  qualities 
of  the  two  nations  and  their  instinftive  inten- 
tions. 

The  Dutch  were  very  peculiar  people. 
Thrifty,  shrewd,  enterprising  in  everything  re- 
lating to  commerce,  ingenious  in  labor-saving 
devices,  and  with  a very  practical  sort  of  intel- 
ligence, there  was  nevertheless  a pleasing  love 
of  ease  about  them  which  was  sometimes  almost 
comic.  They  were  liberal  in  their  opinions, 
and  less  inclined  than  the  other  nations  of 
Europe  to  tyranny  or  intolerance.  They  loved 
to  contemplate  their  comfort  and  prosperity 
while  they  smoked  their  pipes,  and  they  were 
willing  that  the  rest  of  the  world  should  enjoy 
the  same  pleasure.  Although  frank  in  speech, 
they  paid  most  extravagant  compliments  and 
gave  flattering  titles  to  everybody,  and  they 
were  very  fond  of  firing  salutes  and  sending  im- 
portant messages  by  a trumpeter.  When  they 
corresponded  with  the  little  colony  of  the  Pil- 
grim Fathers  at  Plymouth,  their  letter  began, 
“ Noble,  Worshipful,  Wise,  and  Prudent  Lords, 
our  Very  Dear  Friends.” 

They  fought  heroically  for  their  independence 
against  the  Spaniard,  and  won  the  gratitude  of 
the  civilized  world  by  driving  him  out  of  North- 
ern Europe.  But,  their  independence  once  at- 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

tained,  they  settled  down  to  the  substantial  en- 
joyment of  it  and  the  commerce  of  the  Indian 
seas,  and  have  remained  in  that  happy  state  ever 
since.  They  had  no  passion  for  conquest,  and 
were  not  wandering  over  the  earth  with  empires 
in  their  brains,  like  the  Englishmen. 

Their  restful,  contemplative  qualities  have 
been  valuable  material  for  humorous  writers  of 
other  nations.  The  temptation  to  exaggerate 
them  is  almost  irresistible,  and  immortalized 
Washington  Irving  in  Mr.  Knickerbocker’s 
most  veracious  “History  of  New  York.” 

When  evening  came  upon  the  ocean  a Dutch 
ship,  we  are  told,  always  lay  to,  and  the  crew 
went  to  bed  until  morning.  When  a storm  was 
approaching,  the  Dutch  sailors  climbed  aloft 
to  shorten  sail,  smoking  their  pipes,  and  in 
Holland  distances  were  often  measured  by  pipes 
instead  of  miles.  Mr.  Knickerbocker  tells  us 
how  his  ancestor,  who  was  appointed  to  build  a 
great  cathedral,  laid  in  as  a preliminary  a large 
stock  of  pipes  and  many  pounds  of  the  best 
Virginia  tobacco,  which  he  smoked  peacefully 
for  a year,  contemplating  the  details  of  his 
mighty  task  before  he  began  it. 

When  the  privileges  of  the  merchants  who 
had  been  given  the  control  of  New  Netherland 
expired,  efforts  were  made  to  charter  another 
and  more  powerful  organization  to  take  their 
16 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

place,  and  in  1621  the  great  West  India  Com- 
pany was  established.  There  was  already  an 
East  India  Company,  which  controlled  the 
Dutch  trade  and  colonization  in  the  seas  of 
Asia,  and  to  the  West  India  Company  were 
given  America  and  Africa.  By  these  two  great 
corporations  the  Dutch  hoped  to  accomplish 
their  designs  on  the  commerce  of  the  world. 

The  English,  with  sounder  instindl  and  fore- 
sight, created  companies  for  each  one  of  their 
colonies,  and  in  each  one  of  these  the  colo- 
nists themselves  had  an  interest,  and  in  some 
instances  almost  the  entire  control.  But  the 
West  India  Company  was  a vast  armed  com- 
mercial monopoly,  with  an  admiral  and  a fleet 
to  rule  everything  Dutch  on  two  continents,  and 
destroy  the  power  of  Spain  and  Portugal  on  the 
sea.  It  could  subdue,  colonize,  govern,  make 
treaties  with  native  states  and  princes,  build 
forts,  appoint  and  discharge  governors  and  offi- 
cers, administer  justice,  promote  trade,  and  en- 
courage settlers,  and  all  for  the  benefit  of  itself 
and  the  trade  it  should  bring  to  the  ports  of 
Holland.  There  was  no  provision  for  popular 
assemblies  or  legislatures,  which  were  given  to 
all  the  British  colonies  except  Georgia,  nor 
were  the  Dutch  colonists  to  have  the  right  to 
vote  in  any  form. 

As  an  assistance  to  Holland  in  fighting  Spain 
Vol.  II. — 2 17 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

the  West  India  Company  was  very  successful. 
It  captured  and  sunk  the  Spanish  vessels  and 
robbed  them  of  the  gold  and  silver  they  were 
bringing  from  South  America  ; but  in  other  re- 
spects it  was  a failure,  and  ended  its  career  in 
bankruptcy  and  ruin. 

From  the  time  of  the  discovery  of  the  Hud- 
son and  the  Delaware,  in  1609,  until  1626,  the 
Dutch  had  used  those  rivers  merely  as  places 
to  colleft  furs.  But  the  West  India  Company 
now  attempted  to  establish  a permanent  colony, 
and,  seeing  the  evident  advantage  of  Manhattan 
Island  as  the  seat  of  commerce  for  the  whole 
continent,  they  bought  it  for  themselves.  Farms 
were  laid  out  on  the  land  now  covered  by  the 
streets  of  New  York;  the  point  of  land  where 
the  East  River  flows  into  the  Hudson  was  forti- 
fied, and  still  retains  its  name  of  the  Battery  ; 
and  the  people  built  their  little  houses  behind 
it,  near  Wall  Street. 

It  was  an  ideal  spot  for  such  traders  as  the 
Dutch,  for  Long  Island,  or  Sewanhackey,  so  near 
at  hand,  was  the  mint  of  the  Indians,  where  the 
wampum,  or  sewan,  was  manufactured  from  shells 
and  distributed  to  all  the  country.  The  Dutch, 
by  their  close  neighborhood,  could  purchase  it 
cheap  and  use  it  to  buy  furs  from  the  northern 
tribes. 

The  ruler  of  the  colony  was  called  the  director, 
18 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

who  was  instructed  to  govern  as  a father,  and  not 
as  an  executioner  of  the  people.  He  had  his 
council  to  give  him  advice,  a koopman,  or  secre- 
tary, and  the  schout,  who  was  a combination  of 
sheriff  and  prosecuting  attorney.  Only  Dutch 
vessels  were  allowed  to  trade  with  the  colony  or 
in  any  of  the  dominions  of  the  company,  and  in 
this  respeft  the  Spanish  colonial  system  seems 
to  have  been  imitated. 

Among  the  first  settlers  were  some  Walloons, 
French  Protestants  who  had  lived  between 
Belgium  and  France,  where  they  spoke  the  old 
French  language  and  had  been  savagely  perse- 
cuted. They  settled  on  a bay  at  the  north- 
western extremity  of  Long  Island  called  Wahle 
Bocht,  or  bay  of  foreigners,  and  now  corrupted 
into  Wallabout.  Here  the  first  child  of  the 
settlement  was  born,  Sarah  Rapelje,  a name  still 
known  in  New  York. 

The  settlement  subsequently  extended  itself 
to  the  western  extremity  of  Long  Island,  and 
was  called  Breukelen,  after  a Dutch  village  on 
the  Vecht. 

But  New  Netherland  did  not  thrive  ; it  barely 
supported  itself ; and  the  returns  from  it,  con- 
trasted with  the  spoil  from  Spanish  fleets,  dis- 
gusted the  directors  of  the  West  India  Company. 
Colonists  did  not  flock  to  it  as  to  the  English 
colonies.  The  lower  classes  of  Holland  were 


19 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

too  thrifty  and  contented  to  care  to  risk  them- 
selves in  a wilderness.  They  had  no  means  to 
buy  extensive  trafts  of  land  from  the  West 
India  Company,  and  they  did  not  care  to  come 
out  on  chance  or  sell  themselves  as  redemption- 
ers,  like  the  bustling  and  apparently  reckless 
Englishmen. 

The  company  accordingly  attempted  to  peo- 
ple New  Netherland  with  capitalists,  rich  men 
who,  in  exchange  for  a large  traft  of  land  and 
the  title  of  patroon,  would  agree  to  establish 
a little  settlement  of  fifty  people.  A patroon 
who  should  succeed  in  establishing  a city  or  town 
was  to  be  given  power  to  rule  it  and  appoint  the 
officers  and  magistrates  ; and  he  was  given  almost 
absolute  power  over  his  traft  of  land,  and  none 
of  his  people  could  leave  his  service  without  his 
consent. 

All  New  Netherland  was  to  be  taken  up  in  this 
way  by  patroons  except  the  island  of  Manhat- 
tan, which  the  company  reserved  for  itself;  and 
to  Manhattan  must  be  brought  all  cargoes,  to 
pay  the  duty  of  five  per  cent,  before  they  were 
sent  to  Europe.  The  trade  in  furs  the  company 
kept  for  itself,  and  any  fish  the  patroons  ex- 
ported must  pay  a duty  of  three  guilders  a ton. 

This  system  of  feudalism  was  more  aristo- 
cratic than  that  in  Holland  itself.  The  colo- 
nists of  New  Netherland  were  held  down  by 


20 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

a feudal  as  well  as  a mercantile  monopoly. 
The  mere  statement  of  this  condition  of  affairs 
shows  at  once  the  inefficiency  of  the  Dutch  as 
compared  with  the  English  colonial  system, 
under  which  individual  liberty,  the  right  to 
vote,  and  representative  government  were  freely 
allowed  ; and  yet  some  of  the  descendants  of 
the  Dutch  undertake  to  maintain  that  their  an- 
cestors introduced  liberty  and  republican  gov- 
ernment in  the  United  States. 

There  were  many  Dutch  merchants  who, 
having  made  fortunes  in  trade,  were  unable  to 
join  the  landed  aristocracy  of  Holland  because 
the  old  nobility  held  nearly  all  the  land  outside 
of  the  towns,  and  were  unwilling  to  part  with 
any  of  it.  The  colonial  patroon  system  ap- 
pealed direftly  to  this  class,  and  a few  of  them, 
who  also  fulfilled  the  required  condition  of 
being  members  of  the  West  India  Company, 
took  advantage  of  it.  The  intention,  no  doubt, 
was  to  turn  large  numbers  of  the  rich  Dutch 
middle  classes  into  a colonial  aristocracy,  who 
would  people,  in  time,  the  whole  country.  But 
the  system  defeated  itself. 

Kiliaen  Van  Rensselaer,  a polisher  of  pearls 
and  diamonds,  secured  for  himself  a large  traft 
on  the  west  side  of  the  Hudson,  near  Albany. 
Michael  Pauw  obtained  Staten  Island  and  a traft 
called  Hoboken-Hacking,  opposite  Manhattan, 


21 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

where  Jersey  City  now  stands;  and  Pauw  gave 
the  name  Pavonia  to  his  great  manor.  Godyn 
and  Blommaert  had  manors  assigned  them  on 
the  Delaware,  near  Cape  May  and  Cape  Hen- 
lopen. 

Pavonia  afforded  Washington  Irving  much  ma- 
terial for  his  history.  When  Argali,  an  Eng- 
lish captain  from  Virginia,  came  to  Manhattan 
to  protest  against  the  Dutch  occupation  of  the 
country,  the  Pavonians,  Irving  says,  smoked 
their  pipes  so  violently  that  Argali,  seeing 
nothing  but  what  he  supposed  was  a dense  fog 
over  Pavonia,  never  went  near  it. 

These  patroons  were  all  directors  in  the  com- 
pany, had  used  their  official  position  to  obtain 
the  best  grants  for  themselves,  and  the  indigna- 
tion of  the  stockholders  soon  compelled  them  to 
disgorge.  Van  Rensselaer  divided  three-fifths 
of  his  manor  with  Moussart,  Bissels,  Laet,  and 
others,  and  Godyn  and  Blommaert  were  also 
obliged  to  admit  partners.  But  after  all  the 
dividing  the  result  was  that  the  land  of  New 
Netherland  was  in  the  possession  of  a few  rich 
men,  and  immigrants  were  discouraged,  for  their 
condition  would  be  a species  of  serfdom,  with 
no  prospeft  of  advancement  on  what  they 
already  enjoyed  in  Holland. 

A few  settlers,  however,  were  induced  to 
come  to  the  manors,  and  so  far  as  the  colony 


22 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

was  a mere  trading  station,  it  may  be  said  to 
have  flourished.  The  furs  sent  to  Holland, 
which  had  been  worth  forty-six  thousand  guild- 
ers in  1626,  were  worth  one  hundred  and  forty- 
three  thousand  in  1632.  One  ship  is  said  to 
have  taken  to  Amsterdam  a cargo  of  five  thou- 
sand beaver  skins.  But  agriculture  languished  ; 
for  the  Dutch,  or  Swannekens,  as  the  Indians 
called  them,  were  such  inveterate  traders  that 
they  regarded  a farm  merely  as  a place  on  which 
to  drive  bargains. 

In  the  course  of  time  Van  Rensselaer’s  pa- 
troonship  became  prosperous,  and,  in  faft,  it  was 
the  only  one  which  was  at  first  successful.  The 
people  are  described  as  living  amid  the  greatest 
profusion  of  everything,  cultivating  grain  on  rich 
land  which  was  backed  by  forests  full  of  turkeys 
and  deer.  Nuts  and  blackberries  were  abundant, 
and  wild  strawberries  so  plentiful  that  the  jolly 
Swannekens  went  out  into  the  fields  “ to  lie 
down  and  eat  them.” 

The  more  we  examine  the  original  records  of 
New  Netherland  which  the  patient  research 
of  Mr.  Brodhead  has  given  us,  the  more  the 
comic  side  becomes  apparent.  It  is  rather  in- 
teresting to  read  these  original  sources  and  then 
turn  to  see  how  far  they  support  Irving’s  state- 
ments in  his  Knickerbocker’s  “ History  of  New 
York.”  He  has  exaggerated  them,  of  course,  and 

23 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

introduced  at  times  imaginary  incidents  to  help 
out  the  drollery;  but  in  many  cases  the  exagger- 
ation is  comparatively  slight,  and  he  could  have 
amused  his  readers  by  an  almost  literal  account 
of  what  happened  or  by  reprinting  the  original 
records,  some  of  which  are  more  quaint  and 
amusing  than  anything  his  genius  could  invent. 

Van  Rensselaer  was  always  proud  to  call  him- 
self the  “first  and  oldest  patroon,”  and,  finding 
all  sorts  of  interlopers  interfering  in  his  exclu- 
sive trade  in  furs,  he  resolved  to  protect  his 
monopoly  by  force.  He  built  a little  fort  on 
Beeren  Island,  at  the  southern  end  of  his  pa- 
troonship,  and  appointed  the  good  Nicholas 
Koom  as  “ wachtmeister,”  to  defend  his  staple 
right  at  Rensselaer’s  Stein,  as  he  called  the  fort. 
Koom  was  to  collect  a toll  of  five  guilders  on 
all  vessels  except  those  of  the  West  India  Com- 
pany passing  the  fort,  and  compel  them  to  strike 
their  colors  in  homage. 

Soon  afterwards  Govert  Loockermans,  in  his 
yacht  the  Good  Hope,  was  passing  down  the 
river,  when  a shot  from  the  fort  aroused  him. 

“ Strike  thy  colors  !”  shouted  Koom  from  the 
shore. 

“ For  whom  shall  I strike  ?”  replied  Schipper 
Loockermans. 

“ For  the  staple  right  of  Rensselaer’s  Stein.” 

“ I strike  for  nobody  but  the  Prince  of 

24 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

Orange  or  those  by  whom  I am  employed,” 
said  the  valiant  schipper. 

Koom  then  loaded  with  ball,  and  the  first 
shot  went  through  the  sail  and  shrouds,  a second 
passed  overhead,  and  the  third  pierced  the 
princely  colors.  But  Loockermans  kept  on. 
Irving  has  given  the  incident  almost  as  it 
stands  in  the  old  record,  and  then  adds  that  the 
only  effeft  of  the  shots  was  to  make  Loocker- 
mans draw  more  vehemently  on  his  pipe,  and 
for  miles  he  could  be  tracked  down  the  Hudson 
by  his  fierce  whiffs  of  smoke. 

The  three  principal  Governors  of  New  Neth- 
erland — Wouter  Van  Twiller,  William  Kieft, 
and  Peter  Stuyvesant — are  called  by  Irving 
Walter  the  Doubter,  William  the  Testy,  and 
Peter  the  Headstrong,  and  the  most  accurate 
historian  could  not  improve  very  much  on 
that  description.  Van  Twiller,  Irving  tells  us, 
was  an  elderly  man,  descended  from  a long 
line  of  burgomasters  who  had  dozed  away  their 
lives  on  the  bench  of  magistracy  in  Rotter- 
dam ; but  the  aftual  origin  of  Van  Twiller 
would  have  lent  itself  equally  well  to  Irving’s 
purposes. 

He  had  been  a clerk  in  the  West  India  Com- 
pany’s office,  had  married  a niece  of  Van  Rensse- 
laer, the  pearl  polisher,  and  had  been  employed 
by  the  patroon  in  shipping  cattle  to  the  colony. 

25 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

He  was  a most  ridiculously  irresolute  and  igno- 
rant man  to  be  put  in  charge  of  an  important 
province,  over  which  he  had  complete  power, 
without  any  assembly  of  the  people  to  check 
him. 

He  had  scarcely  finished  smoking  his  first  pipe 
after  arriving  on  Manhattan  Island  when  an  Eng- 
lish vessel  arrived,  whose  supercargo,  or  koop- 
man,  was  one  Jacob  Eelkens,  who  had  formerly 
been  in  the  service  of  the  West  India  Company. 
Eelkens  insisted  that  the  English  owned  the 
country,  and  he  intended  to  trade  for  furs  up  the 
river.  Van  Twiller  refused  him  permission  to 
proceed,  ran  up  the  Orange  flag  at  Fort  Amster- 
dam, and  fired  three  guns.  This  firing  of  guns 
for  the  sake  of  the  noise  was  a species  of  intim- 
idation the  Dutch  were  very  fond  of,  and,  to- 
gether with  their  habit  of  blowing  trumpets  for 
the  same  purpose,  gave  Irving  large  opportuni- 
ties for  satire. 

Eelkens  proceeded,  however,  in  spite  of  all 
the  fuss  ; and  instead  of  trying  to  stop  him  with 
a shot  aimed  at  his  ship.  Van  Twiller  summoned 
the  people  before  his  door,  broached  a cask  of 
wine,  filled  a bumper,  and  called  on  all  who 
loved  the  Prince  of  Orange  to  drink  and  assist 
him  against  the  Englishman.  Meanwhile  Eel- 
kens and  his  ship  were  out  of  sight  up  the 
river,  and  the  broad-bottomed  Swannekens, 
26 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

having  finished  their  bumpers,  returned  to  their 
homes  laughing  at  their  governor,  but  not  much 
disturbed  in  their  minds. 

There  was,  however,  in  New  Netherland 
one  prominent  person  of  whom  Irving  could 
not  make  fun.  This  was  De  Vries,  a captain, 
ship-owner,  patroon,  explorer,  and  a man  of 
energy  and  common  sense.  He  was  continually 
making  voyages  to  the  Delaware,  or  up  the 
Hudson,  or  to  and  fro  from  Holland,  laying  out 
trafts  of  land  for  himself,  stocking  them  with 
settlers,  cows,  and  horses,  and  stopping  at  New 
Amsterdam  to  dine  with  Van  Twiller  and  per- 
form the  surgical  operation  of  inserting  a little 
sense  and  courage  into  his  head. 

Dining  and  bumpers  were  an  important  part 
of  governing  at  Manhattan.  The  day  on  which 
Eelkens  escaped  up  the  river,  De  Vries  dined 
with  Van  Twiller  and  explained  to  him  the 
situation.  “ If  it  had  been  my  case,”  he  said, 
“ I should  have  helped  him  from  the  fort  to 
some  eight-pound  iron  beans ; the  English  are 
of  so  haughty  a nature  that  they  think  every- 
thing belongs  to  them.”  And  finally,  after 

reflection,  it  began  to  dawn  on  the  Doubter 
that  he  could  still  send  a ship  in  pursuit  of 
Eelkens. 

So  a pinnace,  a caravel,  and  a hoy  sailed  up  the 
river  to  catch  the  koopman,  and,  finding  him  on 
27 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

shore  near  Fort  Orange,  with  his  tent  pitched 
and  driving  a brisk  trade,  the  Dutch  soldiers 
seized  all  his  goods,  sounding  their  trumpet 
meanwhile  “ in  disgrace  of  the  English,”  as 
they  said. 

De  Vries  now  wanted  to  send  his  own  ship, 
the  Squirrel,  through  Hell  Gate  to  trade  with 
the  Puritans  in  New  England.  But  Van  Twil- 
ler  had  learnt  how  to  be  a governor,  and 
ordered  the  ballast  to  be  thrown  out  of  the 
Squirrel.  When  De  Vries  protested,  he  was 
informed  that  “ all  princes  and  potentates” 
were  accustomed  to  search  vessels,  and  it  was 
important  to  see  if  there  was  anything  in  the 
bottom  of  the  ship  subjeft  to  the  company’s 
tax. 

Instead  of  firing  in  the  air  this  time.  Van 
Twiller  trained  the  guns  of  Fort  Amsterdam 
on  the  Squirrel,  until  De  Vries,  rushing  to 
him  in  the  fort  where  he  stood,  exclaimed, 
“ The  land  is  full  of  fools ; if  you  want  to 
shoot,  why  did  you  not  shoot  at  the  English- 
man who  violated  your  river  against  your 
will  ?”  The  Doubter  was  again  in  doubt,  and 
De  Vries  and  the  Squirrel,  with  its  ballast 
restored,  passed  out  through  Hell  Gate,  fol- 
lowed by  a yacht  which  Van  Twiller  sent  to 
watch  them. 

In  order  that  the  colony  might  be  more  con- 
28 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

fused  and  unsuccessful,  the  patroons  began  to 
quarrel  with  the  company.  They  wanted,  they 
said,  to  have  their  own  monopoly  of  the  fur 
trade.  The  company  could  have  Manhattan 
Island  to  themselves  if  they  liked,  but  each  pa- 
troon  should  have  a monopoly  of  trade  on  his 
own  land  ; and  they  were  continually  begging 
and  teasing  for  this  privilege. 

In  1640  smaller  patroons  were  created,  and 
each  person  who  brought  out  five  colonists  was 
called  a master  and  given  two  hundred  acres  of 
land.  Commercial  privileges  were  extended  to 
all  freemen,  and  trade  was  made  free  to  all  the 
world,  which,  however,  merely  meant  that  any 
one  could  trade  if  he  carried  his  products  in  one 
of  the  company’s  ships. 

At  the  same  time  the  Reformed  Church  of 
the  United  Provinces  was  established  as  the  re- 
ligion of  the  province,  an  aft  which  somewhat 
conflifts  with  the  claim  that  the  Dutch  taught 
America  the  principle  of  separation  of  church 
and  state.  At  the  services  of  this  church  Indian 
wampum  was  put  in  the  colleftion-plate,  and 
wampum  was  the  universal  currency  of  New 
Netherland,  as  tobacco  was  in  Virginia. 

De  Vries  and  Van  Twiller  dined  and  drank 
together  without  the  slightest  ill  will.  When 
De  Vries  arrived  one  day  from  the  sea,  with  his 
ship  badly  leaking,  he  was  cordially  welcomed 
29 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

by  the  governor,  and  the  ship  hauled  out  for 
repairs  in  Smid’s  Vleye,  or  Smith’s  Valley, 
which  was  the  name  given  to  a marsh  between 
East  River  and  Pearl  and  Fulton  Streets. 
Maagde  Padtje,  or  Maiden’s  Lane,  was  in  later 
days  extended  over  this  marsh,  and  a market- 
house  built,  called  the  Vleye  Market,  or  market 
in  the  swamp,  which  was  known  by  the  Eng- 
lish long  after  the  Revolution  as  the  Fly  Market. 

A few  days  after  De  Vries’s  ship  was  hauled 
out,  he  and  Van  Twiller  went  across  the  river 
to  Pavonia,  the  patroonship  of  Michael  Pauw, 
where  Van  Voorst  had  just  arrived  to  take 
charge,  bringing  with  him  some  “ good  Bor- 
deaux wine.”  They  took  with  them  Dominie 
Bogardus,  minister  of  the  Dutch  church,  who 
had  become  an  important  man  at  Manhattan. 
Van  Twiller,  we  are  told,  was  always  “glad  to 
taste  good  wine.”  What  were  the  tastes  of 
De  Vries  and  the  dominie  we  are  not  informed, 
but  they  went  with  Van  Twiller. 

Van  Voorst  was  delighted  to  see  them,  and 
the  dominie  and  Van  Twiller  were  soon  quar- 
relling about  a murder  which  had  been  recently 
committed  in  Pavonia;  but  that  was  soon  settled, 
and  everybody  had  such  a good  time  that,  when 
they  were  returning  to  Manhattan,  Van  Voorst 
fired  a salute  in  their  honor  from  a little  swivel 
gun  in  front  of  his  house.  But  a spark  caught 
3° 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

in  the  thatch  of  his  roof,  and  his  guests  were 
compelled  to  see  the  whole  establishment  in 
which  they  had  been  so  hospitably  entertained 
burnt  to  the  ground. 

Soon  after  the  constable  at  Manhattan  gave  a 
parting  banquet  to  his  friends,  who  were  re- 
turning to  Holland  in  the  Seven  Stars.  Tables 
and  benches  were  arranged  under  a tent  in  the 
fort  at  the  Battery  overlooking  the  bay  which 
we  all  so  often  cross  in  going  to  New  York, 
and  while  the  people  were  feasting,  the  trum- 
peter, we  are  told,  began  to  blow. 

This  was  that  same  valiant  trumpeter,  Cor- 
lear,  of  whom  Irving  makes  so  much.  But 
words  passed,  because  the  koopman  of  the  ship 
and  the  koopman  of  the  cargoes  “ scolded  Cor- 
laer  the  trumpeter.”  Whereupon  “ Corlaer 
the  trumpeter”  turned  upon  his  scolders  and 
gave  them  a drubbing,  chasing  them  to  their 
homes,  where  they  got  their  swords  and  came 
back  for  vengeance.  But  they  indulged  them- 
selves in  nothing  but  “ many  foolish  words,” 
and  the  next  morning,  after  having  slept  it  off, 
“ they  feared  the  trumpeter  more  than  they 
sought  him.” 

So  Van  Twiller  passed  along  in  his  adminis- 
tration, happy,  festive,  unconscious  of  his  short- 
comings, enriching  himself  at  the  company’s 
expense,  and  getting  for  his  own,  among  other 

oi 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

trafts  of  land,  the  little  island  which  is  still 
called,  in  his  honor.  Governor’s  Island.  Before 
he  got  it  the  Indians  had  named  it  Paggauck, 
and  the  Dutch  called  it  Nooten  “ because  ex- 
cellent nut  trees  grew  there.” 

It  was  in  1658  that  the  Doubter’s  administra- 
tion came  to  an  end,  and  by  that  time  Fort 
Amsterdam  was  “ open  on  every  side  except  at 
the  stone  point,”  the  church  and  houses  were 
out  of  repair,  it  was  difficult  to  discover  where 
the  magazine  for  merchandise  had  stood,  the 
ships  were  rotting,  only  one  of  the  three  wind- 
mills was  in  operation,  the  five  bouweries  of  the 
company  were  untenanted,  and  their  cattle  could 
not  be  found.  But  Van  Twiller  was  the  largest 
landholder  in  the  province  not  a patroon.  He 
owned  nearly  all  the  islands  in  both  rivers, 
herds  of  cattle  stocked  his  farms,  and  a few 
days  after  he  was  superseded  he  rented  one  of 
the  untenanted  company  bouweries  for  two  hun- 
dred and  fifty  guilders  a year. 

H is  successor,  William  Kieft  the  Testy,  had 
been  a bankrupt  merchant,  whose  portrait,  ac- 
cording to  the  laudable  custom  of  the  time,  had 
been  hung  upon  the  gallows  of  his  city  in  Hol- 
land. Afterwards  he  had  been  sent  to  ransom 
Christians  in  Turkey,  and  left  some  of  them  in 
bondage  for  the  sake  of  leaving  a larger  balance 
of  the  ransom  money  in  his  own  pocket.  Less 
32 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

easy-going  and  uncertain  than  Van  T wilier,  and 
supposed  to  be  more  discreet  and  sober,  the 
bustling  and  testy  Kieft  was  nevertheless  a most 
inquisitive  and  rapacious  governor,  and  Irving  is 
guilty  of-no  exaggeration  when  he  describes  him 
as  ruling  by  proclamations. 

As  a new  broom  which  was  attempting  to 
sweep  up  the  litter  left  by  Van  Twiller,  he  fired 
a proclamation  at  every  abuse.  The  company 
officials  must  not  carry  on  private  trade  in  furs, 
there  must  be  no  secret  traffic  with  the  New 
Englanders,  no  guns  or  powder  sold  to  the 
Indians,  and  all  sailors  must  remain  on  their 
ships  after  nightfall.  Proclamation  after  proc- 
lamation was  poured  out  against  theft,  perjury, 
calumny,  and  “ all  other  immoralities,”  against 
selling  wine  “ except  at  a decent  price,”  and 
the  people  were  forbidden  to  leave  Manhattan 
without  passports.  It  was  a riotous,  disorderly 
community  over  which  testy  William  had  to 
rule,  and  murder,  mutiny,  and  loose  morality 
seem  to  have  been  rife  among  the  people. 

But  it  is  a little  unfair  to  laugh  at  Kieft  for 
his  proclamations.  There  were  no  legislature 
and  no  laws  in  New  Netherland,  and  the  orders 
or  proclamations  issued  by  the  governor  had  to 
supply  their  place,  as  in  the  Spanish  colonies. 

De  Vries  was  still  coming  and  going,  and 
dined  with  Kieft  even  more  regularly  than  with 
Vol.  II. — 3 33 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

his  predecessor.  In  faft,  the  pair  ruled  the 
province  between  them.  De  Vries,  we  are 
compelled  to  state,  had  been  instrumental  in 
removing  Van  Twiller;  for  in  one  of  his  voy- 
ages to  Holland  he  had  not  hesitated  to  tell  of 
the  sort  of  government  which  was  carried  on  by 
his  good  friend  of  bumpers  and  dinners. 

But  it  is  not  unlikely  that  Van  Twiller  bore 
him  no  ill  will  for  this,  and  may  have  assented 
to  it  to  give  his  friend  a little  importance  with 
the  authorities  in  Holland.  He  had  got  all  that 
was  to  be  had  out  of  his  office,  and  it  was  no 
more  than  fair  that  he  should  retire  to  his 
bouwery,  rented  from  the  company  for  two 
hundred  and  fifty  guilders  a year,  and  give  others 
a chance. 

Before  Van  Twiller’s  reign  was  cut  short,  De 
Vries  had  secured  from  him  a fine  traft  of  land 
on  Staten  Island,  and  in  September,  1638,  he 
sailed  from  the  Texel  with  colonists  to  settle  on 
it.  They  arrived  off  Sandy  Hook  in  midwinter, 
and  the  Dutch  captain  seeing  the  shore  covered 
with  snow,  and  having  only  “ old  false  charts” 
of  the  entrance,  suggested  that  they  return  to 
the  West  Indies,  where  they  could  pass  a pleas- 
ant winter  and  sail  back  to  New  Netherland  in 
the  spring. 

The  Dutch  seem  always  to  have  had  a fancy 
for  lingering  in  the  West  Indies.  In  the  voyage 
34 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

from  Holland  to  Manhattan  they  often  passed 
down  by  the  Azores  and  Canary  Islands  and 
then  across  into  the  Caribbean  Sea,  anchor- 
ing at  their  leisure  in  pleasant  places,  whence 
they  would  sail  north  to  Manhattan  between  the 
Bahamas  and  Bermuda.  One  ship  is  said  to 
have  made  so  many  of  these  anchorages  and 
stopped  to  fish  so  often  that  she  was  six  months 
in  making  the  voyage. 

But  some  of  the  colonists  on  De  Vries’s  ship, 
being  within  sight  of  their  destination,  thought 
it  was  hardly  worth  while  to  go  back.  They 
had  heard  that  De  Vries  had  once  taken  his  own 
ship  into  Manhattan  at  night,  so  they  asked  him 
to  be  their  pilot,  and  he  steered  safely  up  to 
Fort  Amsterdam,  where  there  was  great  re- 
joicing, because  no  ship  was  expefted  at  that 
time  of  year,  and  Kieft  welcomed  him  and 
helped  to  send  his  people  to  Staten  Island. 

Two  years  afterwards  De  Vries  took  it  into 
his  head  to  explore  the  Hudson,  and  on  the 
shores  of  the  Tappan  Zee  found  a beautiful 
traft  of  land  which  suited  him  exaftly.  He 
soon  had  a colony  on  it,  and  named  it  Vriesen- 
dael.  It  was  his  favorite,  and  he  spent  many 
years  there,  not  neglefting,  however,  frequent 
trips  to  see  Kieft  at  Manhattan. 

Among  the  first  proclamations  which  Kieft 
issued  was  one  aimed  at  the  Swedes  on  the  Del- 


35 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

aware.  The  Dutch  had  been  able  to  establish 
something  like  aftual  settlement  and  colonization 
on  the  Hudson,  but  on  the  Delaware  they  still 
remained  traders,  passing  to  and  fro  in  their 
ships  to  colleft  the  furs,  and  not  making  much 
of  an  attempt  to  occupy  the  country.  Sweden 
was  at  this  time  looking  about  for  worlds  to 
conquer,  and  her  people  entered  the  Delaware 
in  considerable  numbers.  They  were  better 
colonists  than  the  Dutch,  and  settled  themselves 
along  the  shores  of  the  bay  and  river  as  far  up 
as  Philadelphia,  while  the  Dutch  scolded  and 
stormed  at  them  in  vain. 

Peter  Minuit,  a renegade  Dutchman,  was  one 
of  the  leaders  of  the  Swedes.  “ I make  known 
to  you,  Peter  Minuit,”  said  Kieft,  in  one  of  his 
proclamations,  “ who  call  yourself  commander 
in  the  service  of  Her  Royal  Majesty  of  Sweden, 
that  the  whole  South  River  in  New  Nether- 
land  has  been  many  years  in  our  possession,  anc^- 
has  been  secured  by  us  with  forts  above  and 
below  and  sealed  with  our  blood  and  he  goes 
on  with  much  bluster  and  flourish  to  hint  of  the 
terrible  things  that  might  happen  to  the  Swedes 
if  they  persisted  in  their  trespassing.  But  the 
Swedes  stayed,  and  far  outnumbered  the  Dutch, 
driving  them  out  of  the  beaver  trade,  and  the 
Dutch  became  mere  interlopers  in  territory  oc- 
cupied by  the  Swedes. 

36 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

In  the  same  way  the  Dutch  attempted  to  con- 
trol the  Conne&icut  River,  where  the  Massachu- 
setts people  under  the  leadership  of  Hooter  had 
settled.  The  coat  of  arms  of  Holland  was 
nailed  to  a tree  at  the  mouth  of  the  Connefticut, 
as  a token  of  possession.  This  was  a method 
always  adopted  by  the  Dutch  and  some  other 
nations  when  claiming  new  territory.  It  was  a 
pompous  flourish  like  the  language  of  some  of 
their  proclamations. 

The  French  often  buried  in  the  ground  lead 
plates  on  which  their  supposed  rights  were  en- 
graved, in  the  hope,  apparently,  that  when  after- 
wards accidentally  dug  up  they  would  be  a proof 
of  occupation.  The  English  never  resorted  to 
any  of  these  formal  methods,  and  instead  had  a 
way  of  sitting  down  in  new  countries  and  stay- 
ing there. 

The  Dutch  hung  up  their  arms  on  the  present 
site  of  Philadelphia,  where  they  were  promptly 
torn  down  by  the  Swedes ; and  near  Cape  Hen- 
lopen,  at  the  mouth  of  Delaware  Bay,  where 
they  attempted  to  establish  a little  colony  called 
Swaanendael,  they  set  up  a tin  coat  of  arms  of 
Holland,  which  an  Indian  took  down  to  convert 
into  tobacco  pipes.  Hossett,  who  was  in  charge 
of  the  place,  made  such  complaints  of  this  insult 
to  their  High  Mightinesses  the  States  General, 
that  the  Indians  killed  the  chief  who  had  made 


37 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

pipes  of  the  tin  heraldry,  and  his  followers,  to 
avenge  his  death,  massacred  every  Dutchman  at 
Swaanendael. 

The  arms  at  the  mouth  of  the  Connecticut 
were  taken  down  by  the  English,  who,  as  the 
Dutch  complained,  “ engraved  a ridiculous  face 
in  their  place  and  the  fort  which  the  Dutch 
built  near  the  present  site  of  Hartford  was 
treated  with  similar  contempt.  The  Puritans 
occupied  the  country  all  round  it,  and  even 
ploughed  the  land  close  up  to  the  redoubt. 
“ It  was  a sin,’’  said  the  Puritan  governor,  “ to 
leave  uncultivated  such  valuable  land,  which 
would  produce  such  excellent  corn  and  when 
the  Dutch  resisted,  the  Puritans  went  up  to  the 
fort  and  pounded  them  on  the  head.  Evert 
Duyckingk,  we  are  told,  while  sowing  grain, 
was  struck  “a  hole  in  his  head  with  a sticke, 
soe  that  the  blood  ran  down  very  strongly.” 

The  Swedes  also  amused  themselves  by  pound- 
ing the  Dutchman’s  head  when  he  became  too 
earnest  in  his  protests.  Kieft  and  others  were 
always  threatening  “great  calamities,”  and  de- 
claring that  they  would  use  “ all  the  means  God 
had  given  them  to  recover  their  rights.”  But 
Printz,  the  Swedish  governor  on  the  Delaware, 
had  a short  method  of  receiving  Dutch  envoys 
or  messengers.  One  he  threw  out  of  his  house, 
threatening  to  shoot  him  ; and  Hudde  com- 
38 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

plained  that  “ the  subje&s  of  the  company,  as 
well  freemen  as  servants,  when  arriving  at  the 
place  where  he  resides,  are  in  a most  unreason- 
able manner  abused,  so  that  they  are  often  on 
returning  home  bloody  and  bruised.” 

But  testy  William  soon  had  more  serious  dif- 
ficulties on  his  hands.  Determined  to  strip  the 
province  of  everything,  after  the  manner  of  his 
nation,  he  exacted  tribute  of  corn,  furs,  and 
wampum  from  the  Indians.  He  professed  to 
be  afting  under  instruftions  from  Holland,  but 
the  Amsterdam  chamber  always  denied  that  they 
had  authorized  such  a measure ; and  it  was  a 
piece  of  foolishness  from  which  the  English 
colonists,  recognizing  the  sturdy  independence 
of  the  Indian  charafter,  had  sense  enough  to 
abstain. 

On  a mere  suspicion  of  some  thefts,  Kieft 
sent  seventy  soldiers  and  sailors,  who  attacked 
the  Raritan  Indians  and  destroyed  their  crops. 
In  return,  the  Raritans  wiped  out  De  Vries’s 
plantation  at  Staten  Island,  and  soon  after  mur- 
dered a Dutchman  at  Deutel  Bay,  on  the  East 
River. 

Kieft  was  now  for  war  against  the  red  man. 
But  the  serious-minded  Dutch  people  of  Man- 
hattan told  him  that  he  was  only  seeking  an  ex- 
cuse for  “ a wrong  reckoning  with  the  com- 
pany and  it  was  easy  for  him  to  talk  of  war 
39 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

“ who  could  secure  his  own  life  in  a good  fort, 
out  of  which  he  had  not  slept  a single  night  in 
all  the  years  he  had  been  here.” 

This  is  the  first  instance  in  New  Netherland  of 
anything  like  a popular  movement  or  representa- 
tive aftion  on  the  part  of  the  people.  They  had 
always  quietly  submitted  to  be  ruled  by  the  gov- 
ernor without  laws  or  legislature,  but  now  they 
seem  to  have  found  a voice  which  was  so  strong 
that  Kieft  dared  not  disregard  it.  He  called  a 
meeting  of  all  heads  of  families  near  Manhattan, 
to  be  held  at  Fort  Amsterdam,  and  there,  on 
the  29th  of  August,  1641,  the  war  question  was 
submitted  to  the  first  meeting  of  the  people  that 
had  ever  been  convened  in  New  Netherland. 

But  the  mass-meeting  was  unwilling  to  decide 
the  question  finally,  and  dispersed  after  referring 
it  to  twelve  of  their  number,  whom  they  called 
the  Twelve  Selectmen,  known  usually  in  New 
York  history  as  The  Twelve.  Their  decision 
was  charafteristic.  The  murder,  they  said, 
should  be  avenged,  but  nevertheless  trade  with 
the  Indians  must  not  be  discontinued  ; and  when 
the  attack  on  them  should  be  made,  the  governor 
“ ought  to  lead  the  van.” 

De  Vries,  who  was  president  of  The  Twelve, 
was,  however,  opposed  to  war,  and  The 
Twelve  were  in  favor  of  delay.  Kieft  sum- 
moned and  consulted  them  several  times,  but 


40 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

could  get  from  them  only  advice  for  delay  ; and 
soon  becoming  more  representative  of  the  peo- 
ple, they  began  to  ask  for  reforms  and  improve- 
ments in  the  government. 

This  was  going  too  far.  They  had  been 
appointed  only  to  give  advice  for  war,  or,  in 
other  words,  to  relieve  Kieft  of  the  responsi- 
bility if  war  was  begun  ; so  he  dissolved  them, 
and  forbade  any  meetings  of  the  people  without 
his  express  orders,  because,  he  said,  they  tended 
to  dangerous  consequences  and  to  the  great  injury 
of  the  country  and  authority.  But  he  allowed 
the  people  to  appoint  four  men  to  assist  him 
in  governing,  whom  he  said  he  would  consult 
when  he  felt  the  need  of  their  advice.  Free 
government  was  certainly  not  much  encouraged 
at  Manhattan. 

Being  unable  to  make  The  Twelve  assume 
responsibility  for  a war,  Kieft  took  the  burden 
on  himself,  and  sent  an  expedition  of  eighty 
men,  commanded  by  a young  ensign.  Van  Dyck, 
who  crossed  the  Harlem  River  with  the  inten- 
tion of  surprising  the  Weckquaesgeeks  at  night. 
But  the  guide  missed  the  wav,  and  Van  Dyck 
got  into  a petulant  fit  of  Dutch  temper  and  re- 
turned ingloriously. 

The  war-cloud  rolled  on  ; there  were  terrible 
rumors  of  the  preparations  of  the  Indians,  and 
another  Dutchman  was  murdered  while  quietly 
4i 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

thatching  a house.  The  Mohawks,  who  lived 
north  of  Albany,  were  the  great  warrior  tribe 
who  ruled  the  inferior  Weckquaesgeeks,  Tap- 
pans,  and  Raritans  living  along  the  Hudson.  In 
the  winter  of  1643  a party  of  nearly  a hundred 
Mohawks,  armed  with  muskets,  came  down  to 
coiled  by  force  a tribute  from  their  victims. 
Seventy  of  the  river  Indians  were  killed,  and  the 
rest  began  to  flee  towards  Manhattan. 

Four  or  five  hundred  of  them  took  refuge  at 
De  Vries’s  colony  of  Vriesendael,  and  after- 
wards moved  farther  down  and  encamped  on 
the  oyster-banks  at  Pavonia,  opposite  Fort  Am- 
sterdam, where  there  were  soon  over  a thousand 
savages  congregated,  and  many  of  them  crossed 
to  Manhattan,  seeking  protection  among  the 
bouweries. 

De  Vries  and  others  thought  that  this  was  an 
excellent  opportunity  to  make  a lasting  peace 
with  all  these  Indians,  who  were  already  grate- 
ful for  the  protection  given  them.  But  at  one 
of  those  dinners  which  were  such  an  important 
means  of  government  in  New  Netherland  it 
was  suggested  to  Kieft  that  the  innocent  blood 
of  the  murdered  Dutchmen  was  still  unavenged, 
and  that  God  had  now  delivered  their  enemies 
into  his  hands. 

A petition  was  presented  to  him  by  some  of 
the  men  who  had  been  of  The  Twelve.  Those 


42 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

who  formerly  had  been  for  delay  were  now  hot 
for  war  when  they  saw  no  necessity  for  a march 
into  the  Indian  country,  and  that  the  enemy 
was  panic-stricken  and  cowering  at  their  feet. 
Kieft  drank  a significant  toast,  and  swore  that  he 
would  make  the  savages  “ wipe  their  chops.” 

De  Vries  and  Dominie  Bogardus  protested  in 
vain.  In  the  dead  of  night  Sergeant  Rodolf  and 
eighty  men  fell  upon  the  unsuspefting  Indians 
at  Pavonia  and  murdered  men,  women,  and 
children  in  cold  blood.  From  midnight  until 
morning  they  shot  and  slashed,  threw  children 
into  the  water  and  drove  their  mothers  in  after 
them,  while  the  screams  were  heard  across  the 
bay  at  Fort  Amsterdam. 

“ I sat  up  that  night,”  says  De  Vries,  “ by  the  kitchen 
fire  at  the  director’s.  About  midnight,  hearing  loud  shrieks, 
I ran  up  to  the  ramparts  of  the  fort.  Looking  towards 
Pavonia,  I saw  nothing  but  shooting,  and  heard  nothing 
but  the  shrieks  of  Indians  murdered  in  their  sleep.” 

Shortly  afterwards,  on  the  same  side  of  the 
river  with  De  Vries,  another  party  of  Indians 
were  surprised  and  forty  of  them  killed.  The 
soldiers  returned  to  Kieft  in  the  morning  with 
heads  and  prisoners,  and  he  welcomed  them  by 
shaking  their  bloody  hands.  /—Even  the  women 
of  Manhattan  were  aroused,  and,  in  imitation  of 
the  savages,  heaped  indignities  on  the  dripping 
heads.  Not  content  with  this  slaughter,  the 
43 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

Dutchmen  invaded  the  Long  Island  Indians,  who 
had  always  been  friendly,  and  robbed  them  of 
their  corn. 

The  English  settlers  of  America  have  not 
very  much  to  boast  of  in  the  way  of  fair  treat- 
ment of  the  Indians,  but  they  never  were  guilty 
of  anything  so  treacherous,  cowardly,  and  cruel 
as  these  attacks  of  the  Dutch.  It  was  the  bru- 
tality of  weakness  and  fear,  for  the  Dutch  were 
utterly  inefficient  in  real  warfare  against  the 
Indians ; and  we  are  reminded  of  the  execution 
of  the  aged  Barneveldt,  the  great  advocate  of  the 
States  of  Holland,  which  has  always  been  a 
stain  on  the  Dutch  character. 

But  we  need  not  concern  ourselves  very  much 
about  the  Indians  on  this  occasion.  Within  a 
few  months  they  had  completely  squared  accounts 
with  the  Dutch,  and  in  faft  had  the  balance  on 
their  side,  just  as  De  Vries  and  the  wiser  heads 
had  prophesied,  ^he  poor  river  Indians,  with  the 
Dutch  before  them  and  the  Mohawks  behind 
them,  made  common  cause  with  the  Long  Island 
Indians,  and,  hiding  in  the  swamps  and  thickets, 
began  those  stealthy  savage  taftics  against  which 
the  Dutchman  was  powerless. 

The  farmer  and  his  cattle  were  shot  down  in 
the  bouweries,  grain,  hay,  and  crops  set  on  fire, 
and  the  women  and  children  whose  lives  were 
spared  carried  into  captivity.  The  outlying 
44 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

districts  of  New  Netherland  were  almost  de- 
populated, and  the  survivors  fled  to  Fort  Am- 
sterdam, on  Manhattan  Island,  where  they 
crowded  together,  begging  to  be  sent  back  to 
Holland.  The  province  was  on  the  eve  of 
being  emptied  of  its  people  ; and  to  stop  the 
calamity  and  prevent  the  people  from  returning 
to  Holland,  Kieft  was  compelled  to  take  them 
all  into  the  employment  of  the  company. 

Days  of  fasting,  and  prayer  were  held,  and 
when  the  Indians  had  had  enough  of  plunder 
and  slaughter  they  made  a treaty  of  peace.  But 
it  could  not  last  long.  In  a few  months  the 
war  was  on  again,  and  the  Indians  swept  the 
whole  country,  including  New  Jersey  and  the 
northern  part  of  Manhattan  Island,  driving  the 
frightened  Swannekens  into  Fort  Amsterdam. 

There,  in  the  little  crumbling  fort  below 
the  modern  Wall  Street,  where  the  current  of 
commercial  prosperity  sweeps  by  every  day, 
was  gathered  all  that  was  left  of  New  Nether- 
land. The  women  and  children  were  hidden 
in  the  straw  huts,  and  the  men  kept  guard  on 
the  mounds  of  earth  which  formed  the  ramparts, 
while  the  Indian  scouts  came  up  close  enough  to 
shoot  at  the  guards. 

In  his  extremity,  Kieft  sent  to  the  Puritans  in 
New  England  for  assistance,  but  received  for 
answer  that  they  were  not  satisfied  “ that  the 
45 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

Dutch  war  with  the  Indians  was  just.”  Pro- 
visions they  were  willing  to  send  as  an  aft  of 
humanity,  but  they  had  not  the  slightest  inten- 
tion of  protecting  the  Dutchman  from  his  red 
enemy  ; and  it  is  not  unlikely  that  many  a 
Puritan  prayed  to  his  terrible  God  not  to  de- 
liver the  Swannekens  from  the  hand  of  the 
heathen,  but  to  sweep  them  off  the  continent, 
so  that  the  saints  might  inherit  the  earth. 

Thrown  on  his  own  resources,  Kieft  organized 
such  forces  as  he  had,  and  as  the  Indians  became 
weary  of  the  success  of  their  contest  he  under- 
took offensive  measures  against  them.  In  this 
he  received  assistance  from  some  of  the  Eng- 
lishmen who  for  several  years  had  been  settling 
themselves  within  the  limits  of  New  Nether- 
land.  Many  of  them  were  Puritans  from  Mas- 
sachusetts, who  for  various  reasons  had  found 
the  life  at  Boston  uncongenial.  But  it  is  notice- 
able that  they  usually  established  themselves  on 
the  outskirts  of  the  province,  either  on  Long 
Island  or  close  to  the  Connecticut  line. 

Among  them  was  the  famous  Mrs.  Anne 
Hutchinson,  who  had  made  a home  for  herself 
near  New  Rochelle,  on  what  has  since  been 
known  as  Pelham’s  Neck,  but  which  the  Dutch 
called  in  her  honor  Annie’s  Hoeck.  Here  the 
Indians  had  murdered  her  and  nearly  her  whole 
family.  But  there  were  two  other  prominent 
46 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

Puritan  refugees  who  escaped,  Daniel  Patrick 
and  John  Underhill,  both  of  whom  had  been 
soldiers  of  considerable  experience. 

Patrick  had  been  employed  to  drill  the  militia 
in  Massachusetts,  but  becoming  “ proud  and 
vicious,”  as  Winthrop  tells  us,  he  sought  safety 
among  the  Dutch.  Underhill  had  been  at  times 
very  sanctimonious,  and  at  other  times  much 
given  to  adultery,  which  he  had  confessed  in  all 
its  details  in  true  Puritan  fashion  with  tears  and 
wailing  before  one  of  the  congregations.  But 
the  saints  finally  despaired  of  converting  him, 
and  he  also  removed  to  New  Netherland. 

Kieft  sent  a hundred  and  twenty  men  to  assist 
Patrick  against  the  Indians  in  the  neighborhood 
of  Stamford  ; but  they  wandered  over  the  coun- 
try all  night  without  finding  the  enemy,  and 
returning  very  weary  to  Stamford,  full  of  that 
peculiar  Dutch  rage  which  seems  to  have  af- 
flicted the  Swannekens  whenever  they  had  to  walk 
very  far  for  nothing,  they  upbraided  Patrick  for 
bringing  them  an  a fool’s  errand.  One  of  them 
was  so  abusive  that  Patrick  resented  his  insults 
by  rough  language  and  spitting  in  his  face,  and 
as  soon  as  Patrick’s  back  was  turned  the  Dutch- 
man shot  him  in  the  head. 

Underhill  was  more  fortunate,  and,  when 
placed  in  command  of  fourteen  Dutchmen, 
routed  the  Indians  in  one  of  their  villages,  and, 
47 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

assisted  by  a party  commanded  by  La  Montagne, 
they  killed  altogether  one  hundred  and  twenty 
of  the  enemy.  Two  of  the  prisoners  were 
brought  to  Fort  Amsterdam  and  tortured.  One 
died  under  his  sufferings,  and  the  other  was 
mercifully  relieved  by  Kieft,  who  had  him 
beheaded  on  the  millstone  in  Beaver’s  Path, 
afterwards  Beaver’s  Lane,  near  the  Battery. 

Kieft  had  now  at  last  round  some  one  who 
could  proteft  his  people.  Underhill  led  another 
expedition,  which  fell  upon  the  Indians  in  one 
of  their  fortified  villages  north  of  Stamford  and 
killed  upward  of  five  hundred  of  them.  This 
ended  the  worst  part  of  the  war,  and  New 
Netherland  was  delivered  by  the  outcast  Puritan 
adulterer. 

The  province  was  in  a shocking  state  of 
ruin  and  confusion.  The  West  India  Company 
was  now  bankrupt,  and  The  Eight,  who  had 
taken  the  place  of  The  Twelve,  demanded  the 
recall  of  Kieft,  whose  misdeeds  they  set  out  at 
length  in  their  petition.  Everybody  longed  for 
a return  of  the  old  easy-going  days  of  Wouter 
Van  Twiller,  the  Doubter  ; and  even  the  Indians 
were  said  to  go  about  crying,  “ Wouter,  Wouter, 
Wouter  !” 

That  good  fellow  De  Vries  had  left  the  country 
in  disgust.  His  advice  had  been  neglefted,  his 
efforts  to  save  the  colony  had  been  in  vain,  and 
48 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

his  two  estates  at  Staten  Island  and  Vriesendael 
had  been  destroyed  by  the  Indians. 

He  sailed  away  never  to  return  ; but,  true  to 
his  old  habits,  he  took  plenty  of  time  on  his 
voyage  to  Holland.  He  coasted  along  the  shore 
of  New  Jersey  and  entered  the  Delaware  River, 
visiting  the  Swedes  and  telling  them  in  his  frank 
way  that  they  had  no  business  there  trespassing 
on  Dutch  territory.  But  they  liked  him  none 
the  less,  for  he  was  always  popular  wherever 
he  went;  and  we  read  that  Printz,  the  Swedish 
governor,  welcomed  him  most  cordially  and 
pledged  him  in  “ a great  romer  of  Rhine  wine.” 
From  the  Delaware  he  went  to  Virginia,  and, 
as  it  was  late  in  the  autumn,  he  spent  the  winter 
there  ; and  we  can  readily  believe  that  he  had  a 
royal  time  with  that  cock-fighting,  fox-hunting 
gentry,  who  were  the  people  of  all  others  who 
could  appreciate  his  good  qualities.  At  last  he 
returned  to  Holland,  where  he  amused  himself 
by  writing  a most  charming  and  simple  narra- 
tive of  all  he  had  seen  and  done  in  New  Neth- 
erland ; and  he  died  almost  the  only  prominent 
man  connefted  with  the  early  days  of  that  un- 
fortunate colony  who  cannot  be  laughed  at. 

The  colony  had  cost  the  company  over  five 
hundred  and  fifty  thousand  guilders  after  deduct- 
ing the  returns  received  from  it ; and  after  five 
years  of  Indian  war  there  were  comparatively 
Vol.  II.— 4 49 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

few  people  in  it.  Besides  traders,  there  were 
only  about  one  hundred  colonists  at  Manhattan. 
Outside  of  that  island  every  settlement  on  the 
west  side  of  the  Hudson  south  of  the  Highlands 
had  been  destroyed,  as  well  as  those  in  the  greater 
part  of  Westchester  and  Western  Long  Island. 

Only  the  patroonship  of  Van  Rensselaer  and 
the  few  posts  on  the  Delaware  remained  un- 
harmed. The  prosperous  English  colonies,  with 
their  rapidly  increasing  population,  were  press- 
ing into  New  Netherland  from  all  sides,  and  it 
was  a question  whether  the  remnant  of  the 
Dutch  had  not  better  be  brought  back  to  the 
fatherland. 

But  an  effort  was  made  to  restore  and  renew. 
Kieft  was  dismissed,  and  Peter  Stuyvesant,  the 
headstrong,  was  made  governor,  or  director- 
general,  as  he  was  called.  He  was  to  be  com- 
pelled to  rule,  however,  with  the  assistance  of  a 
supreme  council,  consisting  of  himself,  a vice- 
director, and  a fiscal. 

In  these  reforms  and  changes  it  was  recom- 
mended that  the  colonists  should  be  settled  in 
towns  and  villages,  “ as  the  English  are  in  the 
habit  of  doing,”  which  seems  rather  inconsist- 
ent with  the  claim  advanced  in  recent  years 
that  the  Dutch  taught  the  town-government 
system  to  the  New  Englanders. 

As  a matter  of  faft,  wherever  the  English 


5o 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

entered  New  Netherland  they  demanded  a self- 
governing  town  for  themselves.  Kieft  allowed 
the  Puritans  from  Stamford,  Connecticut,  who 
founded  the  town  of  Heemstede,  on  Long  Island, 
to  eleCt  their  own  magistrates,  subjeCt  to  his 
approval,  and  in  general  to  manage  their  own 
affairs.  In  the  same  way,  and  insisting  on  the 
same  privileges,  the  English  founded  Flushing, 
which  the  Dutch  called  Vlissingen,  after  a sea- 
port of  Zealand.  But  among  the  Dutch  them- 
selves in  New  York  there  was  no  town  govern- 
ment or  self-government  of  any  kind  which  in 
the  most  remote  degree  resembled  the  New 
England  town  system. 

Peter  Stuyvesant  was  a pompous,  vehement 
old  soldier,  fond  of  displaying  his  knowledge  of 
Latin.  He  had  been  governor  of  the  Dutch 
colony  at  Cura^oa,  and  had  lost  a leg  in  an 
attack  on  the  Portuguese  island  of  St.  Martin. 
The  Indians  called  him  wooden  leg ; and  as  he 
ornamented  the  artificial  limb  with  bands  of  sil- 
ver, he  was  often  called  silver  leg,  which,  of 
course,  gave  Irving  an  opportunity  for  fun.  He 
returned  from  Cura^oa  to  Holland  for  surgical 
aid,  and  on  his  recovery  was  sent  out  to  rule 
New  Netherland  in  place  of  Kieft.  Among 
his  instructions,  he  was  told  to  allow  the  differ- 
ent colonies,  as  the  settlements  were  called,  to 
send  delegates  to  his  council.  This  was  a weak, 
5i 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

half-way  substitute  for  representative  govern- 
ment, intended  to  take  the  place  of  The  Twelves, 
Eights,  and  Fours  which  prevailed  under  Kieft. 

As  soon  as  they  heard  that  William  the  Testy 
was  to  be  superseded,  the  people  were  wild  with 
joy.  Some  of  them,  with  true  Dutch  frankness, 
informed  him  that  they  intended  to  thrash  him 
as  soon  as  he  lost  the  authority  of  his  office,  or, 
as  they  expressed  it,  as  soon  as  he  should  “ take 
off  the  coat  with  which  he  was  bedecked  by 
the  Lords  his  masters.”  Dominie  Bogardus 
also  preached  against  him,  declaring  to  his  con- 
gregation that  the  great  men  of  the  country  had 
been  nothing  but  “ vessels  of  wrath  and  foun- 
tains of  woe”  that  plundered  the  people. 

Against  the  dominie  the  only  revenge  Kieft 
took  was  to  have  drums  beaten  and  a cannon 
fired  during  the  Sunday  service,  and  he  encour- 
aged people  to  indulge  in  all  sorts  of  noisy 
amusements  round  the  church.  But  against 
some  of  the  others  he  was  more  severe,  and  they 
discovered  to  their  sorrow  that,  though  super- 
seded, the  last  days  of  his  power  could  be  cruel. 

He  departed  at  last  with  a fortune  of  four  hun- 
,dred  thousand  guilders,  which  he  had  amassed 
during  his  administration;  but  the  ship  was 
wrecked  on  the  coast  of  Wales,  and  Kieft  and 
Dominie  Bogardus  with  eighty  others  were 
drowned. 


52 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

At  this  time  New  Amsterdam,  as  the  present 
city  of  New  York  was  then  called,  consisted  of  a 
fort  of  earth  ramparts,  situated  near  the  junction 
of  the  East  River  with  the  Hudson,  just  above 
the  present  site  of  the  Battery,  and  surrounded 
by  high-peaked  but  rather  low  houses,  thatched 
with  straw  or  reeds.  The  town  was  nearly  all 
below  Wall  Street,  and  above  it  throughout 
Manhattan  Island  were  the  farms,  or  bouweries, 
as  they  were  called. 

From  the  walls  of  the  fort  towards  the  shore 
and  the  present  Battery  was  open  space,  and  here 
stood  the  lofty  gallows  and  the  whipping-post, 
terrors  to  evil-doers.  Near  to  the  shore  in  both 
the  East  and  the  Hudson  River  the  queer-shaped 
Dutch  ships  lay  at  anchor, — the  hoys,  pinks, 
galleons,  and  yachts.  The  term  yacht,  which 
has  been  adopted  in  English  to  describe  a 
pleasure-boat,  seems  to  have  meant  in  Dutch  a 
vessel  of  less  than  one  hundred  tons,  the  sort  of 
craft  that  was  apt  to  be  used  for  exploring  ex- 
peditions or  light  trade. 

The  Dutch  were  very  skilful  gardeners,  and 
many  of  the  great  variety  of  vegetables  which 
are  enjoyed  in  modern  times  were  first  produced 
in  Holland.  In  New  Amsterdam  they  soon  had 
flourishing  gardens  round  their  houses,  not  only 
of  vegetables,  but  also  of  flowers,  of  which 
they  were  equally  fond.  Van  der  Donck  gives 
53 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

a long  list  of  flowers  which  he  found  blooming 
at  New  Amsterdam  as  early  as  1653,  most  of 
which  had  been  imported  from  Holland  j and, 
besides  these,  they  had  domesticated  many  of  the 
native  wild  flowers.  Flocks  of  geese,  ducks, 
and  chickens  were  of  course  waddling  all  about, 
for  the  thrifty  Dutch  vrouws  delighted  in  them. 

These  same  vrouws  and  their  goodmen  slept 
on  beds  filled  with  feathers  plucked  from  their 
own  geese,  and  for  covering  they  often  used 
another  feather-bed.  They  had  great  quanti- 
ties of  clothes,  and  appear  to  have  found  the 
climate  very  cold.  The  women  wore  innumer- 
able petticoats,  the  men  several  pairs  of  trousers, 
one  over  the  other  ; and  in  church  in  winter- 
time the  men  used  muffs. 

They  had  linen  in  what  seems  to  have  been 
unnecessary  quantity,  not  only  for  wear,  but  for 
the  table  and  bed.  This  was  common  in  all  the 
colonies,  but  the  Dutch  possessed  unusually  large 
supplies.  Some  families  had  five  or  six  hundred 
dollars’  worth  ; and  we  read  of  one  man  who 
had  eighty  muslin  sheets,  twenty-three  linen 
ones,  and  thirty-two  pillow  cases.  This  is  par- 
tially explained  when  we  find  that  there  were 
very  few  wash-days  a year ; and  this  custom  of 
an  enormous  quantity  of  clothes  and  very  few 
wash-days  is  said  to  prevail  in  modern  times  in 
some  parts  of  Germany. 

54 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

But  the  Dutch  were  extremely  clean  and  neat, 
especially  about  their  houses.  Cleanliness  seems 
to  have  been  a characteristic  of  the  colonies,  ex- 
cept among  the  German  peasants  in  Pennsylva- 
nia, of  whom  there  were  many  complaints. 
Several  of  the  French  travellers  were  much  im- 
pressed with  the  cleanness  of  everything  in  New 
England,  and  the  Moravians  at  Bethlehem  in 
Pennsylvania  were  an  exception  among  the 
Germans  of  that  province.  But  even  the  Ger- 
man peasantry,  who  seem  to  have  been  very 
slovenly  for  some  time  after  their  arrival,  be- 
came cleaner  with  the  improvement  of  their 
condition  in  life. 

A great  change  has  taken  place  in  this  respeft 
in  the  nineteenth  century  which  is  difficult  to 
account  for.  Many  people  are  still  living  who 
remember  when  farm-houses  and  all  the  homes 
of  the  lower  classes  had  none  of  the  tawdry 
dirtiness  which  now  makes  a visit  to  them  any- 
thing but  a pleasure.  Some  explain  it  by  the 
modern  labor-saving  devices  which  seem  to  have 
destroyed  the  faculty  for  hard  work,  which  is 
the  only  real  dirt  destroyer,  and  others  trace  it 
to  the  enormous  immigration  of  low  European 
peasantry. 

Before  the  English  conquest  of  New  York 
the  houses  of  New  Amsterdam  are  described  as 
built  of  bricks  of  various  colors,  laid  in  checkers, 
55 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

glazed,  and  very  pretty.  The  front  doors  were 
divided  into  an  upper  and  a lower  half,  which 
was  a custom  brought  from  Holland,  and  is  now 
often  imitated  in  reproductions  of  colonial  ar- 
chitecture. Within  the  houses  were  neat  and 
clean  to  admiration.  The  wood-work  was 
scoured  and  rubbed  until  it  shone  like  the  decks 
of  a man-of-war.  The  floors  were  rubbed  and 
polished  in  the  same  way,  and  sprinkled  with 
fresh  sand  every  day,  which  when  first  put 
on  was  marked  into  patterns  with  the  broom. 
Even  the  Dutch  farm-houses  had  this  virtue  of 
cleanliness,  for  which  the  Dutch  women  were 
famous. 

They  loved  to  get  their  houses  in  perfeCt 
order  every  day,  dress  themselves  well  and 
neatly,  with  bags  hanging  from  their  girdles, 
filled  with  all  the  instruments  of  housewifery, 
and  then  spin  busily  at  their  wheels,  or  in  sum- 
mer sit  on  the  stoop  to  receive  visits  from  their 
neighbors,  and  gossip  while  the  goodman  smoked 
his  pipe. 

Sometimes  they  strolled  in  the  evening  to  a 
grove  of  locust-trees  on  a bluff  of  the  Hudson 
south  of  the  present  Trinity  church-yard,  or 
they  wandered  down  the  “ Maiden’s  Path,” 
now  preserved  in  Maiden  Lane.  They  were 
great  gossips,  it  is  said,  and  there  must  have 
been  plenty  to  tell ; for  the  Dutch  were  frank 
56 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

to  an  extraordinary  degree,  and  called  every- 
thing by  its  common  name. 

The  vrouws  were  very  comfortable  persons, 
not  vivacious,  but  with  the  most  practical  good 
sense.  Some  of  them  engaged  in  trade  or  car- 
ried on  small  business  occupations,  in  which 
they  were  very  skilful.  They  were  probably  as 
good-natured  and  easy-going  as  the  men  ; but 
apparently  it  was  not  safe  to  presume  too  much 
on  their  kindly  disposition.  We  read  in  the 
court  records  of  Brooklyn  that  Mistress  Jonica 
Schampf  and  Widow  Rachel  Luguer  assaulted 
Peter  Praa,  the  captain  of  the  militia,  when  he 
was  at  the  head  ol  his  troops  on  training-day  in 
October,  1690.  They  beat  him,  pulled  his 
hair,  and  handled  him  so  roughly  with  “Ivill 
Inormities”  that  his  life  was  despaired  of. 

It  is  said  that  the  Dutch  had  few  if  any  oaths 
except  “ sacrament.”  When  they  wished  to  be 
very  offensive,  they  put  their  thumb  to  their 
nose  and  wriggled  their  fingers,  an  insult  for 
which  a Dutchman  could  be  punished  in  court  ; 
and  Irving  makes  effeftive  use  of  it  in  his 
Knickerbocker  History. 

They  were  so  extremely  sensitive  to  impu- 
dent or  insulting  speeches  that  if  they  had  had 
many  oaths  the  community  would  have  been  in 
a continuous  turmoil.  People  were  brought  be- 
fore the  court  for  saying  of  another,  “ If  his 
57 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

debts  were  paid  he  would  have  little  left,”  or 
that  “ he  had  not  half  a wife,”  or  that  he  was 
“ a little  cock,  booted  and  spurred  and  Alice 
Morse  Earle,  to  whom  we  are  indebted  for  the 
description  of  many  of  these  early  Dutch  cus- 
toms, has  collected  numerous  other  instances  in 
her  excellent  volume,  “ Colonial  Days  in  Old 
New  York.” 

Their  love  of  gossip,  combined  with  their 
sensitiveness,  kept  the  judges  busy  with  suits  for 
slander.  Dominie  Bogardus  and  his  wife  An- 
neke  sued  a woman  because  she  had  said  that 
Anneke  in  crossing  a muddy  street  lifted  her 
petticoats  too  high.  Dominie  Frelinghuysen 
had  painted  on  the  back  of  his  sleigh  a rhyme 
which  Mrs.  Earle  has  translated  : 

“ No  one’s  tongue  and  no  one’s  pen 
Makes  me  other  than  I am. 

Speak,  evil  speakers,  speak  without  end, 

No  one  heeds  a word  you  say.” 

The  New  York  Dutch  were  certainly  a very 
curious  people,  and  all  the  records  and  remains 
of  their  life  are  full  of  quaintness.  It  is  difficult 
now  to  understand  the  mental  condition  of  a man 
who  could  call  his  yacht  “ The  Pear-Tree.” 

The  Dutch  farmers  lived  in  low,  solidly  built 
houses,  with  small  windows  and  very  large 
cellars,  where  they  stored  great  supplies  of 
58 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

vegetables  and  hogsheads  of  salt  beef,  pork,  and 
fish  for  the  winter.  Their  fireplaces  were,  of 
coarse,  large,  as  in  the  other  colonies.  You 
could  drive  a horse  and  cart  through  them, 
Kalm  said,  and  they  seem  to  have  been  built  far 
out  into  the  room. 

The  Dutch  were  in  general  not  as  heavy 
eaters  as  the  English  colonists,  and  drank  less. 
The  English  called  them  milk-and-cheese  men. 
They  lived  largely  on  the  various  products  of 
milk,  vegetables,  bread,  and  very  good  little 
cakes.  They  were  not,  as  a rule,  great  meat- 
eaters,  like  their  neighbors. 

Their  drinking,  though  less  by  comparison 
than  that  of  the  English,  seems,  however,  heavy 
enough  in  this  less  capacious  age.  After  the 
English  conquest  of  New  York,  the  candidates 
in  an  eleftion  spent  large  sums  for  liquor.  We 
read  of  sixty-two  gallons  of  rum,  several  gallons 
of  brandy,  a pyd  of  wine,  besides  lime-juice, 
shrub,  mugs,  jugs,  and  bottles. 

Before  the  English  conquest,  Dutch  workmen 
on  a building,  as  Mrs.  Earle  tells  us,  had  to  be 
sustained  at  every  stage.  In  1656  those  who 
pulled  down  an  old  building  in  Albany  received 
a tun  of  strong  beer.  When  the  first  stones  of  the 
new  wall  were  laid  the  masons  were  given  a case 
of  brandy,  an  anker  of  brandy,  and  thirty-two 
gallons  of  other  liquor.  When  the  beams  were 
59 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

carried  in  by  eight  men,  they  had  half  a barrel 
of  beer  for  every  beam  ; and  when  the  beams 
were  laid,  two  barrels  of  strong  beer,  three  cases 
of  brandy,  and  seventy-two  florins’  worth  of 
small  beer. 

Criminals  were  punished  by  the  usual  methods 
of  that  age, — the  pillory,  whipping,  imprison- 
ment, and  hanging.  When  there  was  no  prison, 
they  appear  to  have  been  sometimes  locked  up 
in  the  tavern.  Torture  was  used  to  force  con- 
fessions of  guilt.  A number  of  instances  of  it 
are  to  be  found  in  O’Callaghan’s  “ Calendar  of 
Dutch  Manuscripts,”  and  Dutch  New  York 
seems  to  have  been  the  only  one  of  the  colonies 
in  which  this  method  of  the  Middle  Ages  was 
put  in  practice. 

“Oct.  5,  1639.  Hendrick  Jansen,  gunner’s  mate  of 
the  ship  Herring  from  Bremen,  charged  with  an  assault  on 
the  deputy  fiscal,  was  subjefted  to  torture,  but  he  persisted 
in  the  lie.”  (Trumbull  : Blue  Laws, True  and  False,  309.) 

“ Nov.  22,  1641.  Jan  Hobbesen,  charged  with  theft 
(stealing  a sheet  from  a tavern),  persisting  in  denying  the 
charge,  is  put  to  the  torture,  after  which  he  confessed  his 
guilt ; is  sentenced  to  be  whipped  with  rods  and  ban- 
ished.” (Ibid.,  310.) 

There  seems  to  have  been  no  hurry  in  getting 
Stuyvesant  to  New  Netherland  to  take  the  place 
of  Kieft.  His  departure  was  delayed  for  a long 
time  ; and  when  at  last  the  little  squadron  of  four 
60 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

vessels  left  the  Texel,  they  spent  six  leisurely 
months  in  making  the  voyage.  They  captured 
a prize  and  lingered  long  in  the  West  Indies. 

But  in  May,  1647,  they  reached  Manhattan; 
and  although  Stuyvesant’s  coming  was  “ like  a 
peacock’s,  with  great  state  and  pomp,”  and  he 
was  insolent  and  supercilious,  keeping  the 
principal  people  waiting  bareheaded  for  hours 
before  he  would  receive  them,  everybody  was 
determined  to  be  happy.  The  whole  popula- 
tion appeared  under  arms,  paraded  about  among 
the  little  thatched  houses  at  the  mouth  of  the 
East  River,  and  fired  their  guns  until  they  had 
burnt  up  nearly  all  the  powder  in  New  Amster- 
dam. 

Stuyvesant  promised  that  he  would  be  a 
father  to  them,  and  paternal  government  was  all 
that  the  people  could  hope  for.  In  accordance 
with  his  instruftions,  he  allowed  a sort  of  com- 
promise representative  government.  Four  of 
the  colonies — Manhattan,  Amersfoort,  Breucke- 
len,  and  Pavonia — held  an  election  and  chose 
eighteen  persons,  from  whom  Stuyvesant  sele&ed 
nine  to  advise  and  assist  him  in  governing,  but 
only  when  he  chose  to  call  upon  them  for  advice. 
There  were  to  be  no  future  elections.  The 
people  were  allowed  their  voice  only  in  the 
first  instance,  and  after  that  The  Nine,  like  a close 
corporation,  filled  all  vacancies  in  their  body. 

61 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

The  people  were  not  allowed  to  hold  meetings 
of  any  kind,  and  The  Nine  had  to  go  about  from 
house  to  house  to  get  their  opinions. 

The  man  who  had  arrived  like  a peacock  soon 
became  a hawk  and  a vulture.  The  people 
complained  that  he  was  everything.  He  had 
shops  and  breweries,  and  was  a merchant  and  a 
trader  in  lawful  as  well  as  contraband  goods. 
Duties  and  taxes  were  increased ; the  customs 
duties  were  so  high  that  ships  and  traders  were 
kept  away,  and  Stuyvesant  was  eager  to  confis- 
cate property  of  all  kinds  for  the  slightest  in- 
fraction of  his  rules.  Twenty-five  vessels,  it  is 
said,  would  have  visited  Manhattan  annually 
from  the  West  Indies  if  their  owners  had  not 
been  afraid  of  confiscation. 

A court  of  justice  was  organized  and  Van 
Durcklagen  appointed  judge  ; but  Stuyvesant  re- 
quired that  his  own  opinion  should  be  asked  in 
all  important  cases,  and  he  reserved  the  right  to 
preside  over  the  court  whenever  he  saw  fit, — 
a most  comical  arrangement,  which  even  Irving 
could  not  exaggerate. 

The  most  extraordinary  part  of  the  whole 
system  was  that  Stuyvesant,  like  the  previous 
governors,  seems  to  have  had  full  authority  to  do 
what  he  pleased.  Neither  the  company  nor 
the  States  General  of  Holland  appear  to  have 
been  much  interested  or  to  have  exercised  much 
62 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

control,  except  to  appoint  a new  governor  after 
the  excesses  of  the  one  in  power  had  gone  on 
for  many  years.  If  a governor  could  keep 
things  tolerably  quiet  and  prevent  reports  from 
reaching  Holland,  he  could  have  his  way.  We 
read  of  the  governor  openly  storming  at  the 
people  and  threatening  to  punish  them  if  they 
should  tell  on  him. 

Stuyvesant  was  relentlessly  cruel  to  some  of 
the  men  who  had  abused  Kieft  at  the  close  of 
his  administration,  or,  in  other  words,  had  told 
on  him.  The  headstrong  Peter  seemed  to  think 
it  necessary  to  uphold  all  the  rapacity  of  his  pred- 
ecessor. Kieft  had  upheld  Van  Twiller  in  the 
same  way,  and  had  ordered  all  persons  to  re- 
store everything  in  their  possession  belonging  to 
the  company,  unless  they  could  “ prove  that 
they  had  bought  it  from  the  former  director.” 

“ If  I were  persuaded,”  said  Stuyvesant  on  one  occasion, 
“ that  you  would  divulge  our  sentence  or  bring  it  before 
their  High  Mightinesses,  I would  have  you  hanged  at 
once  on  the  highest  tree  in  New  Netherland.  If  any  one 
during  my  administration  shall  appeal,  I will  make  him  a 
foot  shorter,  and  send  the  pieces  to  Holland,  and  let  him 
appeal  in  that  way.” 

In  some  things  headstrong  Peter’s  reign  was 
successful.  He  conquered  the  Swedes  on  the 
Delaware  ; but  it  was  a rather  useless  conquest. 
He  also  resisted  with  success  the  pretensions  of 
63 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

Van  Rensselaer,  who  was  trying  hard  to  make 
his  patroonship  an  independent  colony,  and  had 
almost  absorbed  Fort  Orange,  which  happened 
to  be  situated  within  his  boundaries. 

The  laws  or  proclamations  of  New  Nether- 
land,  Van  Rensselaer  claimed,  ceased  their  oper- 
ation at  the  entrance  of  his  domain,  and  he  re- 
fused to  observe  a general  fast  which  Stuyvesant 
had  ordered.  This  roused  the  ire  of  the  valiant 
Peter,  and  he  visited  Rensselaerwick,  where  he 
was  received  with  the  full  measure  of  Dutch 
pomp  and  salvoes  of  artillery.  The  long  wrang- 
ling ended  in  his  favor;  Van  Rensselaer  was 
reduced  to  his  proper  dimensions,  the  indepen- 
dence of  Fort  Orange  was  secured,  and  it  became 
the  germ  of  the  present  town  of  Albany. 

The  Reformed  Dutch  religion  was  vigorously 
maintained,  and  a proclamation  issued  to  sup- 
press unlicensed  preachers,  and  many  of  them 
were  fined  and  imprisoned.  The  Lutherans  and 
Baptists  were  forbidden  to  hold  religious  meet- 
ings, but  the  Lutherans  finally  obtained  permis- 
sion. When  the  Quakers  appeared,  they  were 
treated  with  more  severity  than  in  any  other 
colony  except  Massachusetts.  Harsh  rules  were 
enforced  against  them,  under  which  a number 
were  banished,  and  those  who  harbored  or 
assisted  them  punished  with  fines  and  imprison- 
ment. 

64 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

The  people  themselves  were  anxious  for  lib- 
erty, and  constantly  struggling  for  it,  demanding 
the  privileges  they  had  enjoyed  in  Holland. 
They  succeeded  during  Stuyvesant’s  administra- 
tion in  bolding  several  Landtdags,  or  popular  con- 
ventions, in  which  they  set  forth  their  grievances. 
But  they  gained  very  little,  because  the  company 
and  the  mother  country  were  indifferent,  and 
the  governor  would  grant  no  privileges  that  he 
was  not  compelled  to  grant. 

The  towns  were,  however,  one  by  one  given 
some  little  control  over  their  own  affairs.  In 
1652  the  Manhattan  people  were  allowed  to 
have  a schout,  burgomasters,  and  schepens,  but 
all  these  officers  were  appointed  by  Stuyvesant. 
Afterwards,  when  this  burgher  government 
was  extended  to  Breuckelen,  Amersfoort,  and 
Midwout,  they-were  allowed  to  nominate  their 
officers  for  the  governor’s  approval.  But  this 
was  granted  as  a very  great  favor,  and  was  in- 
tended to  counterbalance  the  influence  of  the 
English  villages. 

The  English  were  indeed  pressing  close  upon 
New  Netherland.  Stuyvesant  was  in  continual 
negotiations  with  the  confederation  of  the  New 
England  colonies  about  his  boundaries,  and  was 
beaten  at  every  point.  In  1654  the  Connecti- 
cut people  seized  Fort  Hope,  which  the  Dutch 
had  so  long  maintained  at  Hartford.  The 
Vol.  II.— 5 65 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

Yankee  settlers  of  Long  Island  were  in  a con- 
tinual state  of  disaffection,  stirring  up  the  Dutch- 
men to  demand  greater  privileges  and  more  liberal 
government. 

The  Dutch  population  of  New  Netherland 
was  so  small,  and  the  New  England  population 
so  large  in  comparison,  that  it  was  evidently  a 
mere  question  of  time  when  the  Yankees  by 
their  vigorous  overflow  would  absorb  every- 
thing. “ Many  hounds,”  said  Stuyvesant,  “are 
death  to  the  hare,”  and  the  Puritan  hound  was 
becoming  very  keen  and  hungry. 

Under  Cromwell,  England  was  at  war  with 
Holland,  and  the  English  were  becoming  aroused 
to  the  importance  of  their  American  possessions. 
The  intrusion  of  the  Dutch  in  the  best  part  of 
the  continent  was  no  longer  regarded  with  in- 
difference, and  English  diplomats  and  statesmen 
began  to  talk  of  the  superior  title  of  England  to 
all  the  land  from  Labrador  to  Florida  which 
the  discovery  of  the  Cabots  had  given.  Eng- 
land was  now  becoming  an  important  commer- 
cial nation,  contending  with  Holland  for  the 
sovereignty  of  the  seas.  The  New  England 
Puritans,  under  direct  encouragement  from  Great 
Britain,  began  to  make  deliberate  encroachments 
on  the  territory  of  New  Netherland,  and  Mas- 
sachusetts granted  lands  on  the  Hudson  opposite 
to  Fort  Orange. 


66 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

The  relations  between  the  two  communities 
were  strained,  and  the  Puritans  were  evidently 
seeking  an  opportunity  to  begin  an  armed  con- 
test. They  professed  to  have  discovered  a plot 
between  the  Dutch  and  the  Indians  to  destroy 
the  English  in  New  England,  who  were  to  be 
massacred  on  Sunday  when  they  were  all  in 
their  churches.  They  openly  charged  Stuyve- 
sant  with  this,  and  sent  commissioners  to  Man- 
hattan to  colleft  evidence.  They  could  find 
none,  although  they  examined  a great  many 
Indians  and  other  persons.  But  they  still  in- 
sisted on  believing  in  the  plot,  which,  with  en- 
larged details,  was  the  talk  of  Connecticut  fire- 
sides for  nearly  a hundred  years,  and  the  ill 
feeling  between  Dutch  and  English  increased. 

A short  peace  had  been  patched  up  between 
England  and  Holland ; but  on  the  restoration 
of  Charles  II.,  in  1660,  it  was  evident  that  no 
peace  could  be  lasting  between  two  nations  who 
had  become  such  bitter  commercial  rivals,  and 
who  were  trying  to  cut  each  other  out  of  trade 
in  every  part  of  the  world.  Stuyvesant  and  the 
company  felt  that  the  hounds  were  pressing 
them  very  close,  and  the  weakness  of  their 
whole  system  is  shown  in  their  attempt  to  settle 
New  Jersey  with  Englishmen.  They  seemed 
to  think  that  English  dissenters,  being  hostile  to 
the  Church  of  England,  would  be  hostile  to  the 
67 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

whole  British  nation  and  government.  They 
could  not  get  their  own  people  to  leave  the 
dikes  and  windmills  of  Holland,  and  in  the  hope 
of  getting  a large  enough  population  to  resist 
New  England,  they  were  proposing  plans  for 
gathering  immigrants  from  all  the  countries  of 
Europe. 

But  it  was  all  in  vain,  for  the  British  govern- 
ment had  now  decided  to  seize  New  Nether- 
land.  The  argument  which  at  this  moment 
seemed  most  convincing  was  that  as  long  as  the 
Dutch  remained  at  New  Netherland  they  traded 
with  the  colonists  of  Virginia  and  of  New  Eng- 
land, and  every  shilling  they  gained  in  this  trade 
was  that  much  lost  to  England. 

The  English  colonists  were  forbidden  by  the 
navigation  afts  to  send  their  products  to  any 
country  but  England,  and  could  buy  their  sup- 
plies only  in  England,  and  everything  must  be 
carried  in  English  vessels.  But,  with  New 
Netherland  so  near  at  hand,  these  rules  were 
easily  evaded.  From  Virginia  alone  it  was 
estimated  that  the  Dutch  at  New  York  received 
such  quantities  of  tobacco  that  if  sent  to  Eng- 
land in  the  regular  way  the  duty  on  it  would 
have  amounted  to  ten  thousand  pounds  a year. 
For  a king  who  was  so  anxious  to  replenish  his 
exchequer  as  Charles  II.,  this  consideration  alone 
was  decisive. 


68 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

But  how  was  he  to  get  possession  of  New 
Netherland?  England  and  Holland  were  at 
peace,  and  Holland  would  not  admit  that  Eng- 
land was  entitled  to  all  North  America  by  the 
discovery  of  the  Cabots.  It  was  suggested  that 
the  crown  should  simply  assume  that  the  Dutch- 
men at  Manhattan  were  British  subjefts  on 
British  territory,  and  begin  to  rule  them.  But 
this  would  lead  to  war  as  quickly  as  any  other 
method  ; and  it  was  finally  determined  that  the 
best  way  would  be  to  make  a grant  of  New 
Netherland  as  English  territory  to  some  person, 
and  then  put  him  in  possession  by  force. 

Accordingly,  in  1664.,  Charles  II.  gave  to  his 
brother,  the  Duke  of  York  and  Albany,  after- 
wards James  II.,  a grant  of  all  the  land  between 
the  Conneflicut  and  Delaware  Rivers.  Four 
ships  of  war,  under  the  command  of  Colonel 
Richard  Nicolls,  were  at  once  sent  to  put  the 
duke  in  possession,  and  Nicolls  was  to  be  the 
governor  of  the  duke’s  province. 

The  objedl  of  the  expedition  was  known  at 
the  Hague;  but  the  West  India  Company 
refused  to  believe  it.  It  was  merely,  they  said, 
an  expedition  to  reorganize  the  government  of 
New  England  and  establish  Episcopacy  there, 
and  when  that  was  done  the  Puritans  would  be 
more  willing  than  ever  to  live  under  the  Dutch. 
As  for  the  States  General,  when  called  upon  to 
69 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

defend  New  Netherland  from  the  British,  they 
replied  that  they  would  not  be  bothered  with 
making  a war  for  the  West  India  Company. 
They  had  had  trouble  enough  already  with  the 
East  India  Company,  and  they  would  rather 
pull  them  both  by  the  ears. 

But  the  valiant  Peter  prepared  to  defend  his 
colony.  Beer  was  forbidden  to  be  brewed, 
artillery  and  ammunition  collected  from  the 
Delaware  and  Rensselaerwick,  and  the  people 
forced  to  work  on  the  fortifications  ; and  when 
the  English  squadron  anchored  just  outside  the 
Narrows  and  seized  Staten  Island,  vigorous 
old  Silver  Leg  refused  to  surrender. 

The  summons  to  surrender  had  declared  that 
all  the  people  should  be  allowed  to  enjoy  their 
property  ; but  Stuyvesant  was  determined  that 
the  people  should  not  know  of  this,  for  they  were 
not  in  the  least  heroic.  No  stronger  comment 
could  be  made  on  the  utter  failure  of  the  Dutch 
colony  than  that  when  the  English  enemy  ap- 
peared, the  only  man  who  did  not  want  to  surren- 
der was  the  governor,  who,  like  his  predecessors, 
was  making  a fortune  out  of  New  Netherland. 

The  people  soon  suspefted  that  the  terms  of 
surrender  were  withheld  from  them  for  some 
reason,  and  demanded  to  see  them.  Stuyvesant 
stoutly  resisted,  and  warned  the  burgomasters 
and  council  that  if  the  people  knew  the  terms 
70 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

they  would  insist  on  capitulating.  The  English 
seem  to  have  been  aware  of  this  weak  point,  and 
Winthrop,  the  governor  of  Connecticut,  who 
had  accompanied  the  squadron,  came  to  Man- 
hattan under  a flag  of  truce,  and  assured  Stuy- 
vesant’s  council  and  burgomasters  that  if  they 
would  surrender  the  Dutch  could  continue  to 
settle  and  trade  in  the  province  and  pass  to  and 
fro  to  Holland  in  their  own  ships. 

Winthrop  had  also  set  forth  these  terms  in 
a letter  which  on  his  departure  he  handed  to 
Stuyvesant,  and  the  burgomasters  demanded  that 
this  letter  should  be  made  public;  but  the  gov- 
ernor, in  a fit  of  passion,  tore  it  in  pieces  before 
them.  When  this  became  generally  known,  the 
people  refused  to  work  on  the  palisades.  The 
one  thing  they  cared  for  was  to  be  given  them, 
• — namely,  trade ; so  what  was  there  to  fight 
about?  They  crowded  round  the  governor, 
cursing  the  company  and  its  management,  and 
crying,  “ The  letter,  the  letter  !” 

The  fragments  of  it  were  picked  up,  patched 
together,  and  copied  for  the  people  to  read ; but 
the  governor,  headstrong  as  ever  against  all  op- 
position, kept  up  a show  of  resistance,  although 
he  had  burnt  up  a large  part  of  his  powder  in 
firing  salutes  to  Winthrop  and  every  messenger 
who. came  from  the  squadron. 

Nicolls,  growing  tired  of  the  delay,  landed 
7i 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

troops  below  Breukelen,  and  sent  two  frigates, 
which  anchored  between  Fort  Amsterdam  and 
Governor’s  Island.  Poor  old  headstrong  Peter 
stood  in  one  of  the  angles  of  the  fort  by  a gun, 
watching  their  approach.  An  artilleryman  with 
a lighted  match  stood  by  his  side,  and  he  would 
surely  have  had  a shot  at  the  enemy  if  two  of 
the  dominies  had  not  come  and  led  him  away. 
Everybody  remonstrated  and  pleaded  with  him, 
and  at  last  he  yielded,  saying,  “ I would  much 
rather  be  carried  out  dead  and  soon  after  he 
met  the  commissioners  at  his  bouwery  to  arrange 
the  terms  of  surrender. 

The  Dutch  troops  were  marched  out  of  Fort 
Amsterdam  with  the  honors  of  war,  and  imme- 
diately sailed  for  Holland.  A corporal’s  guard 
of  the  English  entered  the  fort,  and  in  a few 
moments  the  British  ensign  was  floating  above 
the  low  walls,  the  windmill,  the  gallows  and 
whipping-post  at  the  river-side,  and  the  queer 
little  thatched  houses  huddling  round  the  fort. 

The  fort  was  named  Fort  James,  in  honor  of 
the  conquering  duke  ; and  when  Nicolls  went 
up  the  Hudson  and  secured  Fort  Orange,  he 
called  it  Albany,  after  the  duke’s  Scotch  title, 
and  New  Amsterdam  was  called  New  York. 

The  Dutch  had  lost  their  best  and  greatest 
colony,  and  it  must  be  confessed  that  they  de- 
served to  lose  it.  They  had  never  really  be- 
72 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

lieved  in  it.  They  had  allowed  it  to  become 
the  plundering-ground  for  a greedy,  selfish  cor- 
poration monopoly  and  its  rapacious  governors. 
They  had  not  the  force  of  chara&er  and  energy 
to  settle  and  rule  it  properly,  and,  unless  they 
intended  to  make  it  a point  of  advantage  for 
controlling  the  whole  continent,  there  was  no 
use  in  their  keeping  it. 

After  an  existence  of  more  than  forty  years, 
its  population  was  less  than  ten  thousand,  who, 
although  they  held  the  present  flourishing  States 
of  New  York,  New  jersey,  Delaware,  and 
Pennsylvania,  the  richest  and  best  part  of 
America,  could  barely  maintain  themselves, 
while  the  New  England  colonies,  with  an  in- 
ferior and  barren  country,  numbered  nearly  fifty 
thousand. 

As  for  the  Dutch  peopling  the  whole  conti- 
nent and  controlling  it,  that  was,  of  course,  im- 
possible. There  was  only  one  nation  compe- 
tent for  that  task,  and  the  sooner  all  others  were 
cleared  out  of  the  way  the  better  for  civiliza- 
tion. The  Dutch  were  traders,  not  colonizers, 
and  they  always  succeeded  best  in  tropical 
countries,  where  they  still  hold  colonies  or 
trading-stations.  Even  while  they  held  New 
York  they  seemed  to  prefer  the  West  Indies, 
and  were  inclined  to  linger  there  on  their  voy- 
ages to  Manhattan. 


73 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

In  Holland  the  seizure  of  New  Netherland 
by  the  British  was  of  course  regarded  as  a 
deadly  insult,  and  a long  war  began.  Within 
ten  years,  in  1673,  the  Dutch  succeeded  in  re- 
taking New  York,  landing  a force  on  the  Hud- 
son, just  back  of  Trinity  Church,  near  the 
present  railroad  ferries  to  Jersey  City.  They 
held  the  country  for  a few  months,  naming  New 
York,  New  Orange  ; Albany,  Willemstaadt ; and 
New  Jersey,  Achter  Kol.  But  at  this  time 
Holland  had  formed  an  alliance  with  Spain  and 
Germany  against  England.  Spain  insisted  that 
all  conquests  should  be  restored,  and  by  the 
treaty  of  Westminster  New  York  was  given 
back  to  England  in  exchange  for  Surinam, 
which  was  given  to  the  Dutch.  The  treaty 
was  confirmed  before  it  was  known  in  Holland 
that  New  York  had  been  retaken,  and  a trum- 
peter was  sent  to  London  to  protest,  but  to  no 
purpose. 

Among  the  Dutch  colonists  in  New  York  the 
English  conquest  was  regarded  almost  with  in- 
difference. They  rapidly  took  the  oath  of  alle- 
giance to  Great  Britain,  and  immediately  began 
to  talk  about  trade.  They  hoped  for  greater 
liberty  than  they  had  enjoyed  under  their  own 
fatherland.  They  asked  that  New  York  should 
have  the  same  commercial  privileges  as  Eng- 
land or  Boston,  and,  if  these  were  granted, 
74 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

they  declared  themselves  ready  to  “ bloom  and 
grow  like  the  cedars  on  Lebanon.” 

Their  expeditions  were  in  a great  measure 
realized,  for  after  twenty  years  of  English  rule 
the  population  of  New  York  had  almost  doubled. 
But  in  civil  government  the  duke  was  at  first 
as  great  a tyrant  as  the  West  India  Company 
had  been.  The  Dutch  laws  and  customs  were 
allowed  to  stand,  with  the  intention  of  gradu- 
ally changing  them,  and  the  colony  was  to  be 
ruled  by  the  governor  and  his  council,  who  were 
to  make  all  laws. 

There  was  to  be  a Court  of  Assizes,  as  it  was 
called,  consisting  of  the  sheriffs  and  justices, 
meeting  once  a year  to  assist  the  governor  and 
his  council  in  law-making.  These  sheriffs  and 
justices  were  appointed  by  the  governor,  and 
their  yearly  meeting  was  in  no  sense  repre- 
sentative government,  for  the  Duke  of  York 
despised  anything  of  that  kind.  The  Court  of 
Assizes  was  enough  privilege  to  allow  the 
people  ; for  the  justices  who  composed  it,  he 
coolly  remarked,  would  be  the  same  persons 
whom  in  all  probability  the  people  themselves 
would  choose,  if  they  were  allowed  the  privi- 
lege of  eledting  them. 

Stuyvesant  had  been  among  the  first  to  take 
the  oath  of  allegiance.  He  spent  the  rest  of 
his  life  in  the  province,  having  first,  like  the 
75 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

thrifty  Dutchman  he  was,  secured  from  the 
British  Privy  Council  a special  license  to  trade. 
He  lived  on  his  little  bouwery  or  farm,  which 
was  situated  at  the  present  Third  Avenue  and 
Thirteenth  Street,  where  he  died  at  the  age  of 
eighty  years.  He  was  buried  under  a little 
chapel  of  his  own  near  his  house,  where  a pear- 
tree  brought  from  the  fatherland  and  planted  by 
his  own  hands  was  preserved  by  an  iron  railing 
until  1867. 

New  York  under  the  duke  was  a proprietary 
colony  with  the  most  despotic  power  given  to 
the  proprietor.  Maryland  and  Pennsylvania 
were  also  proprietary  colonies,  but  their  pro- 
prietors, Lord  Baltimore  and  William  Penn, 
could  make  laws  only  by  consent  of  the  free- 
men of  the  province  or  their  delegates.  The 
Duke  of  York,  however,  was  under  no  com- 
pulsion to  consult  his  people,  and  could  make 
whatever  laws  suited  him.  He  delegated  this 
power  to  his  governor,  Nicolls,  and  Nicolls 
prepared  a code  of  laws  copied  for  the  most 
part  from  the  laws  of  the  New  England  colonies, 
with  additions  and  improvements. 

The  people  were  told  to  eleft  a convention 
of  their  delegates,  which  should  meet  at  Hemp- 
stead and  give  the  governor  advice  and  informa- 
tion about  this  code  ; but  as  soon  as  the  meet- 
ing began  to  make  objeflions  and  suggest  altera- 
76 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

tions,  Nicolls  promptly  told  them  that  they  were 
there  merely  to  approve  what  he  had  prepared 
for  them,  and  he  forthwith  promulgated  the 
code,  which  they  submissively  accepted. 

This  code  established  in  the  fullest  manner 
religious  liberty,  which  had  not  prevailed  under 
the  Dutch.  The  duke  was  a Roman  Catholic, 
and  in  after-years,  when  he  had  been  driven 
from  the  English  throne,  he  told  the  Pop'e  that 
it  had  been  his  intention  gradually  to  establish 
by  law  the  Roman  faith  in  all  the  English  colo- 
nies in  America.  When  only  a duke,  and  in 
possession  of  one  colony,  he  dared  not  make  his 
own  religion  exclusive,  and,  being  unwilling  to 
establish  any  other,  he  had  no  choice  but  to 
establish  absolute  freedom. 

In  1665  he  abolished  the  government  of 
schout,  burgomasters,  and  schepens  which  had 
controlled  New  York,  and  in  its  place  estab- 
lished that  government  of  mayor  and  aldermen 
of  which  we  have  heard  so  much  in  the  modern 
politics  of  the  city. 

Finding  that  the  Dutch,  or  Flemish,  breed  of 
horses  was  as  slow  as  the  schouts  and  schepens, 
he  also,  through  Nicolls,  established  a race-course 
near  Hempstead,  on  Long  Island,  where  a great 
plain  sixteen  miles  long  and  four  wide  was 
found  to  be  covered  with  line  grass  like  the 
English  downs,  “ with  neither  stick  nor  stone 
77 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

to  hinder  the  horses’  heels  or  endanger  them  in 
their  races.”  There  a silver  plate  was  run  for 
every  year,  to  the  great  delight  of  all  subsequent 
governors  and  the  Long  Island  farmers,  whose 
breed  of  massive  horses  in  the  course  of  years 
gradually  improved  in  lightness  and  speed. 

This  open  plain  was  regarded  as  a great  curi- 
osity in  colonial  times,  when  the  whole  country 
was  covered  with  forests,  in  which  travellers 
grew  weary  of  the  continual  succession  of  trees. 
Visitors  were  taken  to  see  it.  The  prairies  of 
the  West  had  not  then  been  discovered,  and 
Burnaby  says  in  his  “Travels”  that  it  was  the 
only  natural  open  space  on  the  continent. 

The  people  in  the  rural  parts  of  the  province 
remained  almost  exclusively  Dutch  for  a hun- 
dred years;  but  New  York  in  the  end  became 
a mixture  of  Dutch,  English,  New  Englanders, 
French,  German,  and  a rabble  from  all  parts  of 
the  world.  Even  under  Dutch  rule  it  was  said 
that  eighteen  different  languages  were  spoken 
round  Fort  Amsterdam. 

In  1682,  the  people  having  become  very  clam- 
orous for  more  liberal  government,  and  refusing 
to  pay  duties  and  taxes,  the  duke  found  that  if 
he  wished  to  get  any  revenue  from  New  York  to 
pay  the  expenses  of  its  government  and  garri- 
son he  must  give  the  people  a representative 
assembly ; and  that  if  he  continued  to  refuse 
78 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

them  this  privilege  he  must  either  sell  the  prov- 
ince to  the  crown  or  have  it  a continual  drain 
on  his  resources.  Just  at  this  time  William 
Penn  had  received  the  grant  of  Pennsylvania, 
and  had  given  his  colonists  a very  liberal  govern- 
ment and  laws  ; and  the  duke,  who  was  a close 
friend  of  Penn,  was  perhaps  influenced  by  him. 

In  1683  New  York  was  given  an  assembly 
elefted  by  the  people,  and  the  duke  and  his 
governor  retained  only  the  right  to  veto  such 
afts  of  this  assembly  as  did  not  please  them. 
In  return  for  this  gift  of  liberty,  the  people  were 
to  raise  funds  to  support  the  government  and 
garrison. 

Two  years  afterwards  Charles  II.  died,  the 
duke  became  king  as  James  II.,  and  as  his  title 
and  power  of  duke  were  absorbed  in  royalty. 
New  York  ceased  to  be  a dukedom  and  became 
a royal  province.  No  longer  feeling  any  neces- 
sity for  keeping  up  the  popular  assembly,  which 
he  detested,  James  II.  abolished  it,  and  appointed 
Thomas  Dongan  to  be  governor  of  New  York 
in  1686,  with  power  to  make  laws  as  he  pleased, 
without  regard  to  the  wishes  of  the  people. 
The  New  England  colonies  were  reduced  by 
James  to  almost  the  same  condition,  and  Edmund 
Andros  was  appointed  to  govern  them. 

Two  years  more  passed  away,  and  in  1688 
James  was  driven  from  the  throne  by  William 
79 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

of  Orange.  All  authority  being  broken  in  the 
colonies  by  this  revolution  in  England,  the  gov- 
ernment at  New  York  City  was  seized  by  an 
absurd,  blustering  German,  Jacob  Leisler,  who, 
by  extravagant  talk  about  liberty  and  by  accusing 
every  one  who  opposed  him  of  being  a papist, 
secured  a large  following  among  the  mixed  popu- 
lation of  the  province,  which  was  not  yet  under 
thorough  control  of  Englishmen. 

Some  such  seizure  was  justifiable  under  the 
circumstances,  for  all  lawful  authority  had  come 
to  an  end  ; and  in  several  of  the  other  colonies 
competent  men  took  possession  of  the  colonial 
government,  by  a committee  of  safety  or  other 
means,  to  prevent  anarchy,  but  always  with  the 
distinft  understanding  that  they  held  it  merely 
until  the  new  king’s  pleasure  could  be  known, 
and  under  these  men  the  government  was 
carried  on  in  an  orderly  manner  without  injury 
to  the  province.  It  is  another  of  those  numerous 
instances  which  show  the  vast  superiority  of 
Englishmen  in  all  political  matters,  and  the  in- 
stinctive manner  in  which  in  emergencies  they 
adopt  the  sound  and  conservative  course. 

But  when  the  German,  Leisler,  seized  New 
York,  having  none  of  the  Englishman’s  instinft, 
he  threw  everything  into  confusion.  Full  of 
insane  suspicions  of  every  one,  elated,  pompous, 
and  ridiculous  with  the  sudden  possession  of 
80 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

power,  he  soon  had  the  whole  province  in  a 
turmoil.  Albany  refused  to  submit  to  his  wild 
rule,  and  for  a time  the  colony  was  ruled  by  two 
governments : one  at  the  head  of  the  Hudson, 
under  the  Schuyler  family,  and  the  other  at  the 
mouth  of  the  river,  under  Leisler,  whose  reckless 
conduft  soon  brought  on  a horrible  Indian 
massacre  at  Scheneftady. 

His  extravagance  and  incompetence  might 
possibly  have  been  forgiven  on  the  ground  that 
he  was  holding  the  government  in  trust  for  the 
new  king,  and  knew  no  better  than  to  make  a 
fool  of  himself.  But  when  Major  Richard 
Ingoldsby  arrived  from  England  with  two  com- 
panies of  British  soldiers,  he  refused  to  let  him 
into  the  fort.  His  excuse  was  that  the  new 
governor  appointed  by  King  William  had  not 
yet  arrived,  and  that  Ingoldsby  had  no  authority 
to  aft  in  his  absence.  There  was  reason  for  not 
letting  Ingoldsby  assume  the  government,  but 
none  for  abusing  and  storming  at  him  ; and  if 
Leisler  had  had  a little  British  common  sense  he 
could  easily  have  smoothed  over  and  compro- 
mised matters  until  the  arrival  of  the  new  gov- 
ernor, who  was  expedted  every  day. 

But  instead  of  a moderate  course  which 
would  have  pacified  everybody,  Leisler  was  so 
swollen  with  his  own  importance  that  he  could 
not  endure  the  thought  of  parting  with  his 
Vol.  II.— 6 81 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

power.  When  he  found  that  some  of  his  per- 
sonal enemies  had  been  appointed  to  office  by 
the  king,  he  cried  out  in  a passion,  “What! 
those  popish  dogs,  rogues — sacrament!  if  the 
king  should  send  three  thousand  such,  I would 
cut  them  all  off !” 

He  collected  militia  in  the  fort  to  support 
him,  and  spread  stories  that  Ingoldsby’s  troops 
were  papists  and  disaffected  persons  from  Eng- 
land who  had  forged  their  commissions.  He 
received  advice  and  requests  from  various  quar- 
ters, urging  him  to  peace  ; but  as  he  seemed  to 
be  rapidly  gathering  his  adherents  into  the  fort 
and  training  the  guns  on  the  town,  the  members 
of  the  council  and  other  respectable  people  col- 
lected the  militia  from  the  country  and  pre- 
pared to  support  Ingoldsby,  who  had  quartered 
his  troops  in  the  city  hall  and  was  aCting  very 
quietly. 

Leisler  might  still  have  escaped  the  worst 
consequences  if  he  had  not  at  this  moment,  in 
a fit  of  passion,  fired  a gun  from  the  fort,  with 
his  own  hands,  on  Ingoldsby’s  troops  on  parade. 
Volleys  of  musketry  followed  from  both  sides; 
several  were  killed  and  wounded  ; and  Leisler 
was  heating  balls  in  the  furnace  to  fire  the  town 
when  hostilities  ceased  for  the  day.  The  next 
day  a few  more  shots  were  fired  from  the  fort ; 
but  Ingoldsby,  aCting  very  properly  and  pru- 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

dently,  refrained  from  attacking  the  fort,  and 
stood  on  the  defensive,  expecting  that  Leisler 
would  attack  the  town. 

Fortunately,  at  this  moment  Sloughter,  the 
new  governor,  arrived  in  the  harbor,  and  after  a 
day’s  parleying  and  foolish  threatening,  Leisler 
surrendered.  He  was  tried  for  treason,  together 
with  some  of  his  prominent  accomplices,  and 
convifted.  Most  of  his  followers  escaped 
punishment,  but  Leisler  himself  and  his  prin- 
cipal assistant,  Milborne,  were  hung. 

It  was  afterwards  thought  that  it  was  a mistake 
to  hang  him,  because  it  gave  him  too  much  the 
charafter  of  a martyr  and  continued  for  many 
years  the  faftions  and  disputes  which  he  had 
started  among  the  Dutch.  But  he  had  been  so 
arbitrary  and  tyrannical,  imprisoning  and  injur- 
ing people  in  every  way,  and  almost  driving  the 
Mohawk  Indians  into  an  alliance  with  the 
French  in  Canada,  that  his  death  was  clamor- 
ously demanded  by  the  most  important  people, 
and  even  women  petitioned  the  governor  to 
execute  sentence  upon  him. 

It  has  been  said  that  Sloughter,  the  governor, 
was  unwilling  to  have  him  executed,  and  that 
those  who  were  determined  to  be  revenged  on 
Leisler  had  to  get  the  governor  drunk  before  he 
could  be  persuaded  to  sign  the  death-warrant. 
In  1695  the  British  Parliament  reversed  the 
83 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

attainder  of  treason  of  all  the  rebels  and  annulled 
their  conviftions. 

The  prominent  people  and  men  of  property 
had  been  Leisler’s  opponents  and  the  lower 
classes  his  friends.  The  reaftion  against  his  ex- 
cesses which  naturally  followed  had  put  the 
upper  classes  in  power,  and  they  were  deter- 
mined to  destroy  him.  In  1699,  when  the 
lower  classes  were  more  in  control,  under  the 
favor  of  Governor  Bellamont,  who  was  in- 
clined to  side  with  them,  the  remains  of  both 
Leisler  and  Miiborne  were  disinterred,  exhibited 
in  state,  and  reburied  in  the  Dutch  church. 

The  strong  dislike  and  distrust  of  Roman 
Catholics  which,  as  we  shall  see,  was  com- 
mon in  all  the  colonies  was  particularly  pro- 
nounced in  New  York.  The  Dutch  had  had 
most  bitter  experience  with  the  adherents  of 
the  Pope,  and  had  more  reason  than  the  Eng- 
lish to  hate  them.  The  Spanish  Inquisition 
had  slaughtered  the  people  of  the  Netherlands  by 
thousands.  The  liberty  of  Holland  was  finally 
gained  by  a long  war  with  Catholic  Spain,  and 
was  maintained  for  generations  by  a continual 
state  of  war  with  all  the  great  Catholic  powers  of 
Europe,  which  believed  that  they  could  destroy 
the  source  of  all  Protestantism  by  crushing  Hol- 
land. Nothing  aroused  so  quickly  the  energy 
and  vigilance  of  a Dutchman  as  to  suggest  the 

84 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

existence  of  a Catholic  plot.  Leisler,  when  he 
had  seized  the  government  at  New  York,  kept 
himself  in  power  by  constant  appeals  to  this 
sentiment. 

In  1699  a severe  law  was  passed  ordering  all 
popish  priests  and  missionaries  to  leave  the 
province  by  the  first  day  of  November,  1700. 
If  any  remained  after  that  date  they  were  to  be 
treated  as  incendiaries,  disturbers  of  the  peace, 
and  must  suffer  perpetual  imprisonment.  Those 
who  should  escape  from  prison  were,  when  re- 
taken, to  be  punished  with  death.  This  seems 
to  have  been  the  severest  of  all  the  colonial 
laws  against  Catholics. 

Many  of  the  negro  slaves  in  New  York  City 
were  Spanish  Catholics  captured  by  Dutch 
vessels  from  the  galleons,  and  when,  in  1741, 
nine  buildings  were  set  on  fire  within  a month, 
there  was  at  once  a suspicion  of  a plot  among 
these  negroes  to  burn  the  town.  England  was 
then  at  war  with  Spain,  and  General  Oglethorpe 
sent  word  from  Georgia  of  a Spanish  conspiracy 
to  burn  all  the  magazines  and  towns  of  the 
British  in  America.  Priests  were  to  be  em- 
ployed, who,  pretending  to  be  doctors  or  dancing- 
masters,  should  gain  the  confidence  of  families. 

This,  combined  with  the  nine  fires,  created  a 
panic  on  Manhattan  Island  not  unlike  the 
Salem  witchcraft  delusion  ; for  to  the  Dutch- 

85 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

man  a papist  seemed  more  dangerous  than  a 
witch  that  rode  a broom. 

Informers  appeared  just  as  fifty  years  before 
in  Massachusetts,  and  soon  one  hundred  and 
sixty  negroes  and  twenty-one  white  men  were 
in  jail.  Every  sort  of  evidence  was  admitted,  as 
at  Salem,  and  the  more  ignorant  and  sensational 
the  witnesses  were  the  more  they  were  believed. 
They  related  extraordinary  tales  of  rites  per- 
formed over  black  rings  on  the  floor  with  bowls 
of  punch  held  over  their  heads. 

Thirteen  were  burned  to  death,  eighteen 
hung,  and  seventy  transported.  Among  those 
hung  was  a white  man  named  Ury,  who  was  be- 
lieved to  have  attempted  to  officiate  as  a popish 
priest.  As  in  the  Salem  witchcraft,  the  excite- 
ment was  checked  when  the  informers,  running 
short  of  material,  began  to  name  important  per- 
sons. 

Leisler’s  outburst  ended  the  formative  politi- 
cal period  of  New  York.  King  William  gave 
the  province  the  usual  colonial  government  of 
governor  and  council  and  a general  assembly 
elefted  by  the  people,  which  remained  un- 
changed until  the  Revolution.  The  original 
Dutch  population  continued  in  the  majority, 
with  the  English  element  increasing  very 
slowly.  There  was  no  serious  problem  in  the 
province,  except  the  gradual  absorption  and 
86 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

control  of  the  Dutch  by  the  English  ; but  the 
process  was  so  gradual  and  so  unconnected  with 
exciting  events  that  there  is  nothing  to  be  said 
of  it,  except  that  there  was  comparatively  little 
change  until  after  the  Revolution,  when,  the 
Dutch  landholding  system  having  been  broken 
up,  the  New  Englanders  swarmed  into  the 
State. 

The  governors  were,  of  course,  Englishmen 
after  the  conquest,  and  appointed  by  the  British 
crown  ; but  the  members  of  the  assembly  and 
many  of  the  officials  were  Dutch. 

At  first  the  only  change  that  could  be  noticed 
was  that  the  population  increased  and  there  was 
more  prosperity,  which  seems  to  have  been 
caused  by  the  more  vigorous  and  steady  gov- 
ernment and  the  removal  of  the  restrictions  and 
burdens  which  had  depressed  the  province  under 
the  imbecile  rule  of  Holland  and  the  West  India 
Company. 

But  as  the  majority  of  the  people  were  Dutch, 
there  was  for  a long  time  little  or  no  change  in 
other  respeCts.  The  men  still  wore  the  numer- 
ous pairs  of  trousers  one  over  the  other,  and  the 
women  the  innumerable  petticoats  of  which 
Irving  made  such  sport.  They  sat  on  the  front 
stoop  in  the  summer  afternoons,  and  smoked 
their  long  pipes  and  drank  their  beer  as  con- 
tentedly under  the  British  crown  as  under 
S7 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

their  High  Mightinesses  the  States-General  of 
Holland.  New-Year’s  Day  was  as  great  a fes- 
tival as  ever,  and  holidays  were  still  made  as 
numerous  as  possible  throughout  the  year. 

They  remained  essentially  traders,  and  were 
slow  in  developing  agriculture  and  very  slow  in 
advancing  into  the  wilderness.  All  through  the 
colonial  period  the  province  consisted  of  the 
town  of  New  York,  on  Manhattan  Island,  and 
straggling  settlements  and  farms  up  the  Hudson 
until  the  next  important  town,  Albany,  was 
reached.  Beyond  Albany,  to  the  north  and 
westward^  the  settlements  branched  out  a little, 
but  the  development  in  this  direction  was  com- 
paratively slight.  It  was  not  until  after  the 
Revolution,  when  the  overflowing  New  Eng- 
landers began  to  cross  the  Hudson  and  the 
province  became  thoroughly  Anglicized,  that 
the  real  development  and  prosperity  of  New 
York  began  and  the  name  of  the  Empire  State 
was  earned. 

The  great  mass  of  the  Catskill  Mountains, 
extending  along  the  west  side  of  the  Hudson 
from  New  Jersey  almost  to  Albany,  was  a seri- 
ous obstacle  to  the  advance  of  the  colonists  into 
the  interior  of  the  province,  and  confined  them 
to  the  narrow  valley  of  the  Hudson.  In  colonial 
.times,  so  far  as  settlement  was  concerned,  the 
Hudson  Valley  was  all  there  was  of  New  York. 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

The  great  region  west  of  Albany,  through 
the  lakes  Oneida,  Cayuga,  Seneca,  and  the 
Genesee  Valley  to  Niagara  Falls,  was  held  by 
the  Iroquois,  as  the  French  called  them,  or  the 
Five  Nations,  as  they  were  called  by  the  Eng- 
lish. The  Mohawks  lived  nearest  Albany, 
along  the  river  which  still  bears  their  name, 
and  they  were  in  many  respefts  the  most  vigor- 
ous, intelligent,  and  warlike  of  all  the  tribes. 
Next  to  them  on  the  west  came  the  Oneidas; 
and  then,  in  order,  the  Onondagas,  the  Cayugas, 
and  the  Senecas,  which  last  were  the  most  nu- 
merous of  the  five  tribes.  In  1715  the  Tusca- 
roras,  a Southern  tribe,  defeated  in  war  by  the 
English  settlers  of  South  Carolina,  moved  up 
and  joined  the  Iroquois,  and  were  given  land 
between  the  Oneidas  and  the  Onondagas.  From 
that  time  the  Iroquois  were  known  among  the 
English  as  the  Six  Nations. 

They  numbered  altogether  about  twelve  thou- 
sand, and  were  the  most  civilized  and  powerful 
tribes  on  the  continent.  They  were  a confed- 
eracy with  a regular  system  of  representation 
and  government,  which,  though  not  reduced  to 
writing,  was  administered  most  effeftively  by 
their  chiefs  and  leading  men.  Their  national 
council  was  composed  of  fifty  chiefs,  of  whom 
the  Mohawks  sent  nine,  the  Oneidas  nine,  the 
Onondagas  fourteen,  the  Cayugas  ten,  and  the 
89 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

Senecas  eight.  Their  women  were  also  allowed 
to  hold  meetings,  and  in  important  matters  their 
advice  was  received  with  respeft.  They  called 
themselves  sometimes  Aquanu  Schioni,  which 
meant  the  United  People,  and  at  other  times  by 
a name  which  meant  the  People  of  the  Long 
House,  possibly,  as  some  have  supposed,  from 
the  shape  of  their  cabins,  or  from  the  long 
extent  of  their  country  from  the  Hudson  to 
Niagara  Falls. 

When  the  first  white  men  saw  them  they 
were  already  living  in  cabins  built  of  wood,  and 
they  cultivated  large  fields  of  corn,  beans,  to- 
bacco, and  pumpkins,  using  stone  implements  to 
perform  their  work.  They  were  more  thrifty 
and  provident  than  the  other  tribes,  storing  their 
crops  against  a time  of  want,  and  manufacturing 
rude  pottery.  They  built  strong  forts  palisaded 
with  logs,  which  were  proof  against  the  white 
man’s  fire-arms  of  that  time,  and  they  made  a 
sort  of  armor  out  of  sticks  and  deerskins. 

For  many  generations,  and  before  the  white 
men  knew  them,  they  had  dominated  all  the 
tribes  of  the  country  westward  to  the  Missis- 
sippi and  southward  to  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  and 
it  has  even  been  said  that  they  had  made  hostile 
expeditions  through  Mexico  and  into  the  Isth- 
mus of  Panama.  They  collected  tribute  from 
the  New  England  Indians  and  from  the  River 
90 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

Indians,  as  they  were  called,  along  the  Hudson. 
The  Pennsylvania  tribes  were  also  their  vassals, 
and  they  drove  their  western  enemies,  the 
Hurons  and  Ottawas,  to  the  sources  of  the 
Mississippi. 

Their  superior  intelligence  and  skill  in  the 
arts  of  their  wild  life  gave  them  this  dominion  ; 
and  they  had  also  by  accident  or  natural  shrewd- 
ness selected  for  their  home  the  region  which 
is  the  military  strategic  point  for  all  the  rest 
of  the  country.  A glance  at  the  map  shows 
that  from  their  Long  House,  across  the  lake 
region  of  New  York,  natural  water  highways 
led  in  every  dire&ion  to  the  south  and  west. 

On  their  left,  as  they  looked  south,  was  the 
Hudson  ; then  came  the  Delaware  and  the  Sus-. 
quehanna  with  their  sources  along  the  southern 
edge  of  the  house  ; at  the  southwest  corner  the 
head-waters  of  the  Allegheny,  leading  into  the 
Ohio,  which  leads  into  the  Mississippi ; and  on 
the  west  Lake  Erie  with  its  long  chain  of  inland 
seas.  The  rapid  currents  of  all  these  streams 
could  in  a few  days  sweep  their  light  war  canoes 
into  Long  Island  Sound,  the  Delaware  Bay,  the 
Chesapeake,  or  the  valley  of  the  Mississippi. 

Military  men  from  Washington  to  Grant 
have  often  called  attention  to  the  natural  strength 
of  this  situation,  and  the  Long  House  with  the 
Hudson  Valley  is  probably  to-day  the  strategic 
9i 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

position  for  the  white  man’s  dominion,  as  it  was 
three  hundred  years  ago  for  the  Iroquois. 

Receiving  fire-arms,  steel  tools,  and  textile 
fabrics  from  Europeans,  the  Five  Nations  ad- 
vanced considerably  in  civilization  during  the 
hundred  and  fifty  years  of  the  colonial  period. 
They  built  houses  of  planks,  instead  of  logs, 
planted  larger  crops,  had  fields  of  turnips  and 
carrots,  orchards  of  peach-,  apple-,  and  pear- 
trees,  and  graveyards  with  wooden  monu- 
ments. They  held  the  balance  of  power 
between  the  French  in  Canada  and  the  English 
colonies  south  of  them,  and  were  in  a very  im- 
portant sense  makers  of  American  history. 

They  could  have  annihilated  New  Nether- 
land  at  any  moment  and  swept  the  Dutchmen 
into  the  ocean,  but  they  were  not  much  dis- 
posed to  do  so.  Apparently  an  instinft  of  self- 
preservation  restrained  them  ; and  they  seemed 
to  see  their  true  policy  in  becoming  a neutral 
nation,  receiving  knowledge  and  improved  facili- 
ties from  the  white  men  north  and  south  of  them, 
prompt  to  resent  aggressions  and  insults,  but 
content  to  hold  the  Long  House  intafl,  without 
any  desire  for  vengeance  or  conquest  that  might 
bring  upon  them  swift  destruction.  As  long  as 
they  held  to  this  policy  they  flourished,  and 
when  they  changed  it  at  the  time  of  the  Revolu- 
tion, their  doom  was  sealed. 

92 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

The  Dutch  had  been  always  well  aware  of 
the  power  of  the  Five  Nations,  and  used  the 
utmost  care  to  keep  on  friendly  terms  with 
them.  Fortunately,  the  Long  House  of  these 
Indians  was  some  distance  from  the  Hudson 
Valley,  and  the  Dutch,  finding  room  enough  for 
their  purposes  within  that  valley,  did  not  press 
upon  the  lands  of  the  Iroquois,  and  did  not  come 
in  competition  with  them,  as  they  did  with  the 
river  tribes.  Albany  was  at  the  eastern  door  of 
the  Long  House,  and  there  the  Dutchmen  stood 
to  receive  the  beaver  skins  from  the  Mohawk 
and  the  Seneca. 

The  great  manor  of  the  Van  Rensselaers  was 
also  close  to  this  eastern  door,  and  on  the  con- 
duct of  that  family  in  their  dealings  with  the 
red  man  a great  deal  depended.  Arendt  Van 
Corlear  was  the  Indian  agent  for  the  Van 
Rensselaers,  and  became  so  popular  among  the 
Five  Nations  that  for  more  than  a hundred 
years  afterwards  they  called  every  governor  of 
New  York  Corlear. 

Close  by,  another  family,  the  Schuylers,  had 
their  home  and  estate.  They  were  not  patroons, 
and  had  no  special  feudal  privileges  ; but  they 
owned  great  trails  of  land  with  tenants,  which 
gave  them  in  effeft  the  position  of  barons. 
They  intermarried  with  the  Van  Rensselaers, 
and  these  two  families  had  great  influence  in 
93 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

New  York  long  after  the  Revolution.  The 
Van  Rensselaers,  it  was  said,  furnished  the 
money  and  the  Schuylers  the  brains. 

To  the  Schuylers,  and  especially  to  Peter 
Schuyler,  the  head  of  the  family,  has  usually 
been  given  the  credit  of  rendering  most  valuable 
service  in  securing  the  continued  friendship  of 
the  Five  Nations.  The  early  Dutch  traders 
had  been  very  careful  in  their  dealings  with 
them  ; but  the  increase  of  irresponsible  hunters 
and  frontiersmen  in  the  Mohawk  Valley,  who 
cheated  the  red  men  and  furnished  them  with 
fire-water,  and  the  reckless  policy  while  Leisler 
held  the  government,  were  rapidly  alienating 
them. 

At. this  junfture,  about  the  year  1692,  Peter 
Schuyler  began  to  interest  himself  in  their 
affairs,  and  soon,  by  his  ability  and  honesty  in 
dealing  with  them,  secured  their  respeft.  They 
called  him  Quider,  which  was  their  way  of 
pronouncing  Peter,  and  he  was  supported  and 
assisted  in  his  dealings  with  them  by  the  fami- 
lies of  his  brothers  and  the  Cuylers,  who  also 
had  large  estates  in  that  region. 

Peter  Schuyler  was  mayor  of  Albany,  colonel 
of  the  militia,  judge  of  the  criminal  court,  head 
of  the  commissioners  of  the  colony  for  Indian 
affairs,  and  for  many  years  conducted  all  ne- 
gotiations, offset  the  intrigues  of  the  French, 
94 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

and  defeated  an  invading  force  of  the  French 
and  Indians  from  Canada.  He  took  five  of  the 
Iroquois  chiefs  to  England  in  1709,  where  they 
were  duly  impressed  with  the  importance  of  an 
alliance  with  Oueen  Anne  ; and  in  return  for 
his  services,  Anne  wished  to  knight  him. 

But  with  his  simple-hearted  Dutch  frankness 
he  declined  the  honor.  He  already,  he  said, 
had  more  property  than  his  brothers’  families, 
and  a title  might  arouse  envy  and  estrangement 
among  a large  connexion  which  had  always 
enjoyed  the  most  united  happiness  and  whose 
unity  was  valuable  to  the  province. 

He  died  in  1724,  and  for  some  years  the 
relations  with  the  Six  Nations  were  not  so 
favorable  as  was  desired,  until  that  romantic 
charadter,  William  Johnson,  appeared  in  1738 
to  take  the  place  of  Quider. 

Johnson  belonged  to  a well-known  and  promi- 
nent family  of  the  gentry  of  Ireland.  He  was 
intended  for  mercantile  life,  but  his  plans  were 
changed  by  the  refusal  of  his  parents  to  allow 
him  to  marry  a lady  with  whom  he  had  fallen 
in  love.  His  uncle.  Admiral  Sir  Peter*  Warren, 
owned  lands  on  the  Mohawk  River  which  he 
had  from  his  wife,  one  of  the  De  Lanceys  of 
New  York,  and  young  Johnson  was  sent  to 
manage  these  lands  and  encourage  settlers  to 
come  to  them. 


95 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

Vigorous  and  genial  in  temperament  and  fond 
of  hunting,  he  became  fascinated  at  once  with 
the  wild  life  of  the  frontier.  He  settled  near 
the  Mohawk  River,  west  of  Schenectady,  and 
soon  surrounded  himself  with  an  establishment 
which  resembled  in  some  respefts  a Carolina  or 
Virginia  plantation.  He  colonized  and  laid  out 
farms  and  villages,  had  stores  and  mills,  traded 
with  the  Indians,  and  indulged  himself  to  the 
full  in  the  sports  of  the  forest  and  a most  liberal 
hospitality  in  his  large  mansion-house,  which  in 
appearance  was  not  unlike  the  plantation-houses 
in  Virginia. 

He  married  a German  girl  of  the  country,  by 
whom  he  had  several  children,  and  after  her 
death  he  had  several  mistresses,  the  favorite  and 
most  famous  of  whom  was  an  Indian  girl  of 
unusual  beauty, — Molly  Brant,  sister  of  Joseph 
Brant,  the  Mohawk  chief.  She  bore  him  eight 
children,  and  he  lived  with  her  until  his  death. 

He  had  a most  numerous  household, — a sec- 
retary named  Lafferty,  who  was  also  his  lawyer; 
a physician.  Dr.  Daly  ; a bouw-master  to  take 
charge  of  his  farm  ; a gardener,  who  kept  lawns 
and  flower-beds  round  his  house,  though  in  the 
midst  of  a wilderness  ; a dwarf,  who  played  the 
violin  ; a school-master,  who  taught  his  numerous 
progeny,  natural  and  legitimate,  as  well  as  those 
of  his  neighbors ; and,  besides  these,  he  had 
96 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

fifteen  or  twenty  slaves,  house  servants,  a butler, 
dwarf  waiters,  a blacksmith,  and  a tailor. 

He  built  lodges  at  various  places  for  hunting 
and  fishing,  established  churches  and  saw-mills, 
and  introduced  into  the  Mohawk  Valley  fruit 
culture,  sheep,  and  thoroughbred  horses.  His 
fame  spread  through  all  the  colonies,  and  he 
was  petted  and  courted  by  every  one,  visited 
by  governors  and  distinguished  men,  who  never 
wearied  of  his  conversation,  and  made  a trustee 
of  Oueen’s  College,  now  Rutgers,  at  New 
Brunswick,  New  jersey. 

With  the  Six  Nations  he  acquired  a com- 
manding influence  from  the  beginning,  learned 
their  language,  became  familiar  with  all  their 
customs  and  traditions,  and  the  fierce  Mohawks 
made  him  one  of  their  chiefs.  He  had,  it  seems, 
a most  fascinating  manner  and  address,  made  up 
of  mingled  manliness  and  affability,  which  won 
the  entire  devotion  of  the  strong  as  well  as  the 
weak.  During  his  whole  life  he  was  the  means 
of  communication  and  friendship  between  all  the 
English  colonies  and  the  Six  Nations,  and  he 
saved  the  Six  Nations  from  an  alliance  with 
the  French.  He  was  in  constant  employment, 
making  treaties,  settling  land  grants  and  small 
disputes  with  these  Indians,  and  in  an  intercourse 
of  this  sort  of  over  thirty  years  they  never  lost 
their  confidence  in  his  honesty  and  integrity. 

Vol.  II.— 7 97 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

He  commanded  the  expedition  which  defeated 
Dieskau  at  Lake  George,  and  for  this  viftory  he 
was  made  a baronet,  and  he  certainly  lived  like 
one.  His  services  were  fully  recognized  by  the 
British  government,  which  lavished  upon  him 
land  grants,  salaries,  and  absolute  power  in  deal- 
ing with  all  the  northern  Indians.  After  hold- 
ing the  Six  Nations  in  check  through  the  long 
French  and  Indian  wars  which  followed  Brad- 
dock’s  defeat,  and  preventing  them  from  joining 
in  the  conspiracy  of  Pontiac,  he  died  in  1774, 
just  when  the  Six  Nations  were  debating  whether 
they  should  join  the  colonists  or  the  mother 
country  in  the  Revolution. 

On  this  decision  their  fate  depended.  If  they 
had  remained  neutral,  as  many  of  their  chiefs 
counselled,  or  if  they  had  joined  the  colonists, 
they  would  in  all  probability  still  be  the  Six 
Nations,  inhabiting  a country  of  their  own  in 
the  heart  of  New  York,  and  in  almost  as  high  a 
state  of  civilization  as  the  white  man.  But 
they  chose  to  take  sides  with  the  British,  and 
after  assisting  in  the  campaign  which  ended  in 
the  defeat  of  Burgovne  at  Saratoga,  they  began  to 
massacre  in  the  Cherry  Valley,  in  New  York, 
and  finally  made  a descent  into  Pennyslvania, 
where  they  destroyed  the  settlement  of 
Wyoming. 

General  Sullivan  was  sent  to  conquer  them, 
98 


Van  Cortlandt  Manor 

Croton,  N.  Y. 

Built  1748 


■Man;  -m.;:*  :ind  the  Tappan  Zee 

:'n>  ‘"dcd  the  expeeddon  which  defeated 
! • urge,  and  for  this  vidtorv  he 

•'  . and.  he  certainly  lived  like 
i'  ''C:  ■■  re  fully  recognized  by  the 

which  lavished  upon  him 
.>  grant.-  • *.  :,d  absolute  power  in  deal- 
ing with  di  • .rn  Indians.  After  hold- 

ing the  Sr\  iju , check  through  the  long. 
:7r  uch  a 1 ft.ihi-  - • • ; i . . : h followed  Brad- 
■ from  joining 

he  con  t ir  died  in  1774, 

just  when  the  Six  N ting  Whether 

they  should  join  the  ,,  1,  . or  the  mother 
country  in  the  Revolution. 

On  this  decision  their  fate  depended.  If  they 
had  remained  neutral,  as  many  of  their  chiefs- 
-■■-'lied,  or  if  they  had  joined  the  colonists, 
they  would  in  all  probability  still  be  the  Six 
Nations,  inhabiting  a country  of  their  own  in 
the  heart  of  New  York,  and  in  almost  as  high  a 
state  of  civilization  as  the  white  man.  But 
they  chose  to  take  sides  v d.  ! - British,  and 
a -t  assisting  in  the  campaign  which  ended  in 
the  defeat  of  Rurgoyne  at  Saratoga,  they  began  to 
massacre  in  the  Cherry  Valley,  in  New  York, 
ttifritilA  via'?  1 c-/si vania, 

e / a-  t'Y;  ^ ,nd3o-iO  ement  of 
indng.  ski  iiiua 

General  Sullivan  was  sent  10  conquer  them, 
98 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

and,  following  up  the  Susquehanna  Valley,  he 
defeated  them  at  the  entrance  of  their  Long 
House,  and  then  invaded  their  pretty  villages, 
cornfields,  and  orchards,  which  were  all  ruth- 
lessly destroyed.  Their  alliance  with  the  British 
was  ended,  and  their  spirit  and  existence  as  a 
confederacy  broken.  They  relapsed  into  their 
separate  tribal  existence,  and  lost  all  of  that 
interesting  civilization  which  thev  had  been 
building  up  so  long.  They  became  almost  in- 
stantly mere  ordinary  degraded  Indians,  and 
their  descendants  are  still  to  be  seen  in  summer 
time  selling  colored  baskets  at  the  watering- 
places  of  Northern  New  York. 

The  New  York  of  colonial  times  presents  the 
curious  pifture  of  the  vast  territory  from  Ni- 
agara Falls  to  Albany  an  unbroken  wilderness, 
save  the  occasional  patches  of  cultivation  of  the 
Iroquois,  who  held  the  country  with  an  iron 
hand,  though  under  the  shrewd  influence  of  a 
most  romantic  and  Bohemian  white  man.  At 
Albany  we  have  the  great  patroonship  of  the 
Van  Rensselaers  and  the  great  estates  of  the 
Schuylers  and  Cuylers,  with  a large  part  of  the 
population  living  as  their  tenants  ; and  as  we 
pass  down  the  Hudson  we  meet  with  the  manors 
of  the  Cortlandts  and  the  Livingstons,  and  the 
great  Philipse  manor  at  Yonkers.  At  Manhat- 
tan Island  the  manors  cease,  and  on  Long  Island, 
99 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

after  emerging  from  the  circle  of  Dutch  at  the 
eastern  end  of  it,  we  find  ourselves  among  the 
English  Puritans,  who  had  migrated  from  Con- 
necticut and  established  the  New  England  sys- 
tem of  small  towns. 

Colonial  New  York  was  a strong  aristocracy, 
with  nearly  all  the  available  land,  except  on  Long 
Island,  in  the  hands  of  a few  great  families,  who 
would  not  part  with  any  of  it,  and  insisted  that 
every  immigrant  that  came  to  the  province 
should  become  their  tenant.  This  was  a serious 
check  to  the  growth  of  the  colony  and  the 
principal  cause  of  its  backwardness  until  the 
system  was  changed  after  the  Revolution.  Im- 
migrants, especially  English  immigrants,  and 
the  Puritans  of  New  England,  who  were  seek- 
ing an  outlet  for  their  surplus  population,  re- 
fused to  come  to  a province  where  they  were 
compelled  to  be  the  tenants  of  Dutchmen, 
when  in  Pennsylvania  or  New  Jersey  they  could 
take  up  all  the  land  they  pleased  in  their  own 
right. 

It  was  very  different  from  the  aristocracy  of 
Virginia,  where  there  were  no  tenants,  and  each 
aristocrat  owned  a plantation,  which  he  culti- 
vated with  slaves.  There  were  slaves  in  New 
York,  rather  numerous  considering  that  it  was 
a Northern  colony ; for  the  Dutch  had  been 
among  the  earliest  slave-traders,  and  the  West 


ioo 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

India  Company  had  brought  many  negroes  to 
New  Netherland.  But  they  were  used  as  house 
servants,  seldom  worked  in  the  fields,  and  were 
most  numerous  in  the  town  of  New  York, 
where  they  caused  the  serious  disturbance  which 
has  been  described.  They  intensified,  however, 
as  slaves  always  do,  the  aristocratic  tone  of  the 
province. 

The  tendency  of  the  patroonships  and  manors 
to  check  development  and  deter  immigrants  was 
increased  by  a sullen  though  quiet  hostility  of 
the  Dutch  against  the  English.  They  tried 
their  best  to  keep  them  out ; and  not  only  the 
patroons  and  great  men,  but  the  small  land- 
holders, clung  to  their  property  and  refused  to 
sell  to  Englishmen,  who  in  colonial  times  had 
great  difficulty  in  creeping  into  the  province, 
except  on  Long  Island  and  in  the  neighborhood 
of  the  town  of  New  York.  They  could  come 
in  as  traders  and  merchants,  and  they  became 
numerous  on  Manhattan  Island  ; but  compara- 
tively few  of  them  could  gain  any  real  foothold 
in  the  rest  of  the  country  until  after  the  Revo- 
lution. 

Another  serious  injury  to  the  progress  of  the 
colony  was  the  corruption  of  its  government. 
This  corruption,  having  been  started  under  the 
old  Dutch  governors,  continued  almost  unabated 
after  the  English  conquest.  Dongan,  an  Irish- 


ioi 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

man,  appointed  governor  by  the  Duke  of  York, 
was  as  thrifty  as  Van  Twiller.  When  the  duke 
became  king,  this  Dongan  made  use  of  the  change, 
on  the  plea  that  it  had  vacated  charters  and 
patents,  to  demand  that  new  charters  should  be 
taken  and  fees  paid  to  him.  New  York  and 
Albany  each  paid  him  three  hundred  pounds, 
and  Rensselaerwyck  two  hundred  pounds. 

Governor  Fletcher  embezzled  the  revenue, 
allowed  the  fortifications  and  government  houses 
to  fall  into  decay,  just  as  Van  Twiller  had  done, 
and  his  officials  made  money  by  selling  protec- 
tion to  pirates,  and  secured  for  themselves  large 
grants  of  land.  All  this  seems  to  have  been 
done  without  protest  from  the  people,  who 
apparently  regarded  it  as  a matter  of  course. 

As  we  read  on  through  the  colony’s  history 
in  the  eighteenth  century,  we  find  that  the  cor- 
ruption continues.  Land-grabbing  and  schemes 
to  defraud  the  Indians  of  their  land  were  nu- 
merous, and  in  some  of  these  the  Dutch  clergy 
were  interested.  Dominie  Dellius,  the  pastor 
at  Albany,  was  charged  with  procuring  fraudu- 
lent deeds  from  the  Indians,  and  a Dutchman 
named  Pinhorne  obtained  in  a suspicious  manner 
trafts  four  miles  wide  and  fifty  miles  long  by 
the  banks  of  the  Mohawk  River. 

Peter  Schuyler  was  at  first  interested  in  this 
land  purchase,  but,  unable  to  reconcile  himself 


102 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

to  the  fraud  of  the  transaction,  he  retired  from 
it ; and  it  is  extremely  doubtful  if  the  lantern  of 
Diogenes  could  have  found  another  man  like  him 
among  the  prominent  men  of  the  province. 

Lord  Cornbury,  who  was  governor  for  a 
time,  appropriated  to  his  own  use  one  thousand 
pounds  that  had  been  raised  for  the  defence  of 
the  frontiers  and  fifteen  hundred  pounds  that 
had  been  raised  for  batteries  at  the  Narrows. 
He  also  received  two  thousand  pounds  as  a 
present  from  the  assembly  in  such  a scandalous 
manner  that  Queen  Anne  prohibited  any  more 
such  gifts.  He  extorted  money  from  ship- 
masters, and  was  as  wasteful  and  reckless  with 
the  public  property  as  Van  Twiller. 

He  was  fond  of  dressing  himself  in  women’s 
clothes,  and  was  frequently  seen  in  the  evening 
in  this  costume,  strolling  about  on  the  ramparts 
of  the  fort  with  a fan  in  his  hand ; and  a por- 
trait of  him,  which  is  still  preserved  in  Eng- 
land, shows  him  in  this  dress  with  the  fan. 
This  strange  whim  was  either  a rakish  joke — 
for  he  had  been  heard  to  say  that,  as  he  was 
the  representative  of  Queen  Anne,  who,  by 
the  way,  was  his  cousin,  he  must  dress  as  a 
woman — or  else  he  was  crazy.  Some  said  it 
was  in  consequence  of  a vow. 

The  wife  of  this  “ peculiar  and  detestable 
maggot,”  as  he  was  called,  was  in  every  way  his 
103 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

equal.  He  had  married  her,  it  is  said,  for  the 
beauty  of  her  ear,  and  when  the  novelty  of  the 
ear  wore  off,  he  neglefted  her  and  would  give 
her  no  money.  She  stole  clothes  and  other 
things  she  wanted  from  all  her  acquaintances, 
by  borrowing  and  never  returning.  She  had 
a lordly  way  of  going  to  visit  people  in  their 
houses  and  ordering  them  to  send  to  her  home 
anything  that  caught  her  fancy,  and  she  had 
eight  or  ten  young  women  whom  she  compelled 
to  come  to  her  and  do  her  sewing.  As  she  was 
the  governor’s  wife,  few  in  those  days  of  great 
respeft  for  authority  dared  refuse.  When  the 
wheels  of  her  carriage  were  heard  in  the  streets, 
the  people  would  say,  “ Here  comes  my  lady  ; 
hide  this  ; hide  that ; take  that  away.” 

Governor  Hunter  devised  a plan  to  import 
Germans  at  the  expense  of  the  British  govern- 
ment, and  ostensibly  to  benefit  the  colony  by 
their  labor  in  producing  naval  stores,  but  at  the 
same  time  to  enrich  himself  or  Robert  Living- 
ston. There  were  at  that  time  twenty  or  thirty 
thousand  Germans  in  England  who  had  been 
invited  by  Queen  Anne  to  flee  from  cruel  per- 
secution in  their  native  country.  More  had 
come  than  were  expefled  or  wanted,  and,  all 
being  destitute,  they  had  to  be  housed  in  tents 
in  the  fields  near  London  until  they  could  be 
got  rid  of. 


104 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

They  were  shipped  to  Ireland,  Louisiana, 
and  various  places,  and  Hunter  obtained  three 
or  four  thousand  of  them,  together  with  a grant 
by  Parliament  of  ten  thousand  pounds  to  assist 
his  projeCt.  More  than  half  of  them  died  at 
sea  from  the  dirt  and  disease  of  the  ship.  The 
rest  were  put  to  work  on  the  Livingston  manor ; 
but,  finding  themselves  in  a condition  of  abjeft 
slavery,  and  discovering  the  fraud  of  the  whole 
transaction,  they  deserted  and  scattered  them- 
selves through  the  country. 

Many  of  them  were  given  lands  by  the  In- 
dians, and  after  they  had  planted  their  crops 
and  were  flourishing,  the  governor  informed  them 
that  they  had  no  title  to  their  land  and  must  pay 
for  it.  Some  submitted,  and  the  rest  were  again 
scattered,  many  of  them  going  into  Pennsyl- 
vania ; and  ever  after  that  the  Germans,  who  at 
that  period  were  coming  to  Pennsylvania  in 
large  numbers,  carefully  avoided  New  York. 

The  corruption  of  the  whole  system  of  man- 
agement in  New  York  is  shown  by  the  constant 
appearance  of  back  claims  against  the  govern- 
ment, invented  on  one  excuse  or  another,  and 
often  thirty  years  old.  They  were  paid,  how- 
ever, apparently  without  much  indignation  or 
protest,  and  in  17 1 7 forty-eight  thousand  pounds 
in  paper  money  had  to  be  issued  to  meet  one 
batch  of  them. 


105 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

But  it  is  needless  to  multiply  details  and  de- 
scribe the  governors  who  destroyed  deeds  and 
invalidated  titles  so  that  they  could  gain  fees  by 
reissues,  or  to  tell  of  Clinton,  who  made  a for- 
tune  of  eighty  thousand  pounds  out  of  his  office, 
or  of  Clarke,  who,  beginning  as  clerk  of  the 
council,  became  governor,  and  returned  to  Eng- 
land worth  one  hundred  thousand  pounds. 

New  York  is  said  to  have  had  more  colonial 
governors  than  any  of  the  other  provinces,  and 
it  is  not  surprising,  because  six  or  seven  years 
seem  to  have  been  long  enough  for  any  one  of 
them  to  amass  a fortune,  and  it  was  but  fair 
that  others  should  be  given  a chance,  or  a 
“ whack,”  as  the  Irish,  who  now  rule  New 
York,  call  it. 

As  the  judges  under  the  old  Dutch  rule  had 
been  mere  creatures  of  the  governor,  and  com- 
pelled to  submit  their  important  decisions  to 
him  for  revision,  so  after  the  English  conquest 
we  find  the  bench  shamefully  controlled  by  po- 
litical influence.  The  modern  corruption  in 
New  York  under  the  Irish,  and  the  direct  buy- 
ing by  the  judges  of  their  seats  in  the  courts  of 
law,  which  is  the  worst  blot  on  our  American 
civilization,  seem  to  be  a direft  inheritance. 

It  is  true  that  a great  many  of  the  frauds  in 
colonial  New  York  were  the  work  of  English 
governor? ; but  they  were  committed  because 
106 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

the  Dutch,  who  composed  the  majority  of  the 
province,  allowed  them  to  be  committed.  They 
could  have  stopped  it  all  by  complaint,  remon- 
strance, or  aggressive  attack ; and  it  is  note- 
worthy that  the  few  people  who  protested 
against  the  corrupt  condition  of  affairs  were 
usually  Englishmen,  conspicuous  among  whom 
were  William  Smith,  William  Livingston,  and 
J.  Morin  Scott,  who  founded  a reform  society 
called  the  “ Sons  of  Liberty.” 

Rapacious  and  dishonest  men  often,  in  that 
age,  sought  employment  under  the  British  crown 
and  obtained  colonial  appointments,  and  they 
robbed  New  York  because  her  people  allowed 
her  to  be  robbed.  Some  of  the  men  who 
were  governors  of  New  York  were  at  other 
times  governors  of  some  of  the  other  colonies, 
where  they  never  dared  even  to  attempt  such 
outrages. 

If  such  things  had  been  attempted  in  Massa- 
chusetts or  Pennsylvania,  there  would  have  been 
an  uprising  which  would  have  given  us  some 
exciting  pages  of  history  ; and  when  in  Virginia 
Charles  II.  and  his  creatures  started  on  similar 
courses  of  public  plunder,  there  was  instantly  a 
bloody  rebellion  led  by  Nathaniel  Bacon,  which 
for  a time  destroyed  the  royal  authority  in  the 
province. 

The  Dutch  as  a nation  have  had  the  general 
107 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

reputation  of  being  honorable  in  trade  ; but  in 
political  government  and  public  transa&ions  in 
New  York  they  seem  to  have  been  rotten  to  the 
core,  and  they  corrupted  the  English  who  came 
to  them.  The  English  governors  imitated 
almost  to  the  letter  the  methods  of  the  old 
Dutch  governors,  because  the  opinion  of  the 
community  had  not  changed,  and  they  upheld 
the  plundering  by  an  Englishman  as  readily  as 
they  had  that  by  a Dutch  governor.  We  find 
Clarke,  when  he  was  in  the  midst  of  amassing 
his  one  hundred  thousand  pounds  in  seven  years, 
writing  home  to  the  British  government  most 
gloomy  descriptions  of  the  prospefts  of  the 
colony  and  the  poverty-stricken  emoluments  of 
its  governor,  just  as  if  he  had  been  Van  T wilier  ; 
and  the  people  seem  never  to  have  been  in- 
clined to  check  him  or,  in  headstrong  Peter’s 
words,  “ tell  on  him.” 

In  the  days  of  Washington  and  Jefferson, 
John  Adams  used  to  say  that  New  York  politics 
were  always  an  inextricable  mystery  to  him. 
If  he  had  read  the  colonial  history  of  the  State 
he  need  not  have  wondered.  The  English  race 
is  by  no  means  perfeft  or  entirely  free  from 
corruption  ; but  on  the  whole,  if  left  to  them- 
selves, they  are  more  honest,  pure,  and  efficient 
in  political  matters  than  the  Dutch,  the  Irish,  or 
any  of  the  alien  nationalities  which  it  has  been 
108 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

our  misfortune  to  have  in  such  numbers  among 
us. 

The  corruption  in  colonial  New  York  pro- 
duced a famous  episode  in  the  development  of 
the  law  of  libel,  known  as  the  Zenger  case. 
John  Peter  Zenger  was  in  1734  one  of  the  few 
men  who  seemed  inclined  to  “ tell  on”  the  gov- 
ernors and  their  subservient  courts.  Old  Peter 
the  Headstrong  would  have  threatened  to  make 
him  a foot  shorter  and  send  the  pieces  to  Hol- 
land ; but  there  were  no  newspapers  in  Stuy- 
vesant’s  time,  and  Zenger  had  the  advantage  of 
coming  out  suddenly  with  his  statement  in  print. 
He  asserted  in  the  journal  of  which  he  was 
editor  that  some  one  had  deserted  New  York 
and  gone  to  Pennsylvania,  giving  his  reason  : 

“ We  see  men’s  deeds  destroyed,  judges  arbitrarily  dis- 
placed, new  courts  erefted  without  consent  of  the  legisla- 
ture, by  which,  it  seems  to  me,  trials  by  juries  are  taken 
away  when  a governor  pleases  ; men  of  known  estates  de- 
nied their  votes  contrary  to  the  received  praftice  of  the  best 
expositor  of  the  law.  Who  is  there  in  that  province  that 
can  call  anything  his  own,  or  enjoy  any  liberty  longer  than 
those  in  the  administration  will  condescend  to  let  them  do 
it?  for  which  reason  I left  it,  as  I believe  more  will.” 

Zenger  was  promptly  arrested  by  the  gov- 
ernor’s order,  and  when  the  grand  jury  refused 
to  indift  him,  he  was  prosecuted  by  the  attorney- 
general  on  information.  The  lawyers  of  New 
109 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

York  were  at  that  time  in  as  demoralized  a con- 
dition as  the  judges,  and  consisted  mostly  of 
mere  demagogues,  pettifoggers,  or  worse.  Two 
of  the  few  good  ones,  Alexander  and  Smith, 
who  were  to  defend  Zenger,  began  their  pro- 
ceedings by  attacking  the  validity  of  the  com- 
missions of  two  of  the  judges,  De  Lancey  and 
Philipse,  and  for  this  impertinence  were  dis- 
barred from  praftice,  and  John  Chambers  was 
assigned  by  the  court  as  counsel  for  Zenger. 

But  when  the  day  of  the  trial  came,  the 
services  of  Andrew  Hamilton,  a Quaker  lawyer 
of  Philadelphia,  were  secured.  Hamilton  was 
speaker  of  the  Pennsylvania  assembly,  and  a 
man  of  considerable  learning  and  brilliant  elo- 
quence. The  argument  of  the  government  was 
that,  whether  the  libel  was  true  or  false,  Zenger 
must  be  convi&ed  because  he  had  reviled  those 
in  authority,  who  were  the  king’s  representa- 
tives. 

Against  this  Hamilton  offered  to  prove  the 
truth  of  Zenger’s  statements.  He  enlarged  on 
the  tyranny  and  cruelty  of  trying  a man  on  in- 
formation after  a grand  jury  had  refused  to  in- 
dift  him.  He  described  the  condition  of  the 
province,  and  declared  that  free  people  were 
not  bound  by  law  to  support  a governor  who 
went  about  to  destroy  it.  They  had  a right  to 
protest  and  tell  their  grievances.  It  was  not  the 
no 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

cause,  he  told  the  jury,  of  one  poor  printer,  or 
of  New  York  alone;  it  was  the  cause  of  every 
freeman  that  lived  under  the  British  government 
in  America. 

“ It  is  the  best  cause,  it  is  the  cause  of  liberty;  and  I 
make  no  doubt  but  your  upright  conduft  this  day  will  not 
only  entitle  you  to  the  love  and  esteem  of  your  fellow- 
citizens,  but  every  man  who  prefers  freedom  to  slavery  will 
bless  and  honor  you  as  men  who  have  baffled  the  attempt 
of  tyranny,  and  by  the  impartial  and  uncorrupt  verditt, 
have  laid  a noble  foundation  for  securing  to  ourselves,  our 
posterity,  and  our  neighbors  that  to  which  nature  and  the 
laws  of  our  country  have  given  us  a right — the  liberty  both 
of  exposing  and  opposing  arbitrary  power,  in  these  parts  of 
the  world  at  least,  by  speaking  and  writing  the  truth.” 

This  was  a most  apt  and  strong  statement  of 
the  modern  do&rine  of  the  law  of  libel ; but  at 
that  time  it  was  not  recognized  either  in  Eng- 
land or  America.  De  Lancey,  the  chief-justice, 
charged  the  jury  direftly  against  it.  But  they 
accepted  Hamilton’s  view,  and  acquitted  Zenger 
amid  cheers  and  shouts,  which  the  chief-justice 
could  not  restrain  by  threats  of  arrest.  The 
successful  advocate  was  given  a banquet  and  a 
gold  box  with  the  freedom  of  the  city,  and  a 
salute  was  fired  in  his  honor. 

The  patroons  and  other  great  landed  proprie- 
tors spent  much  of  their  time  in  the  town  of 
New  York,  where  many  of  them  had  winter 
houses.  Even  before  the  English  conquest  the 


hi 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

thrifty  habits  of  the  Dutch  traders  had  raised  to 
wealth  and  refinement  many  of  those  families 
which  now  form  what  we  have  long  known  as 
the  Knickerbocker  aristocracy.  Van  Dam,  Van 
Cortlandt,  Van  Curler,  Philipse,  Van  Dyke,  Van 
Ness,  Ten  Eyck,  Van  Schaack,  Schermerhorn, 
Brinkerhoff,  Van  Brunt,  Van  Pelt,  and  Van 
Wart  are  some  of  the  names  which  Irving  found 
easy  to  ridicule,  because  they  all  sound  absurd 
to  English  ears.  It  is  a laughable  chapter  in 
which  he  describes  how  all  these  clans  gathered 
to  assist  the  mighty  Stuyvesant  in  his  war  against 
the  Swedes  on  the  Delaware. 

It  was  a curious  aristocracy,  unlike  anything 
in  Pennsylvania  or  New  England;  and  though  at 
first  it  seems  to  resemble  the  plantation  nobility 
of  the  South,  a close  inspection  shows  a wide 
difference.  There  was  none  of  the  Virginian’s 
intense  love  of  sport,  fox-hunting,  racing,  and 
cock-fighting.  The  Dutchman  was  a more  re- 
poseful aristocrat,  and  athletics  were  not  within 
his  tastes. 

Though  vastly  more  liberal-minded  than  the 
New  England  Puritan,  he  yet  had  a strange 
touch  of  the  Puritan  objection  to  amusements, 
except  when  indulged  in  by  boys.  A ride  on  a 
heavy  Flemish  horse,  a peaceful  pipe  at  the 
front  door,  where  he  watched  the  wrens  and 
swallows,  with  billiards  or  a game  of  cards,  was. 


1 1 2 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

he  thought,  quite  enough.  He  cannot  be 
charged  with  the  excesses  of  gambling,  rough 
pleasure,  and  the  daring  speculative  life  of  the 
Virginian,  nor  with  the  Virginian’s  intellect  and 
creative  genius  in  politics. 

But  there  was  much  that  was  worthy  and 
fascinating  among  the  Dutch  patroons,  and 
it  would  have  been  pleasant  in  those  days  to 
have  passed  from  the  mansion-houses  of  the 
Philipses,  Van  Dams,  or  Schuylers  to  Shirley 
or  Westover  on  the  James,  and  note  the  con- 
trast. 

The  Dutch  manor-houses  were  often  large 
and  beautifully  decorated,  with  chimney-pieces 
of  carved  marble,  arabesque  ceilings,  wainscoted 
walls,  and  panels  of  Dutch  tiles.  It  seems  to 
have  been  not  uncommon  for  one  of  these  estab- 
lishments to  have  fifty  white  and  black  servants 
to  assist  at  the  entertainments  and  take  care  of 
the  house  and  grounds. 

There  was  usually  a large  formal  garden, 
edged  with  box,  which  was  the  special  care  of 
the  ladies  of  the  family,  and  women  of  the 
better  classes  took  a pride  in  working  with  their 
own  hands  in  both  vegetable-  and  flower-gardens. 
The  New  York  Dutch,  like  their  ancestors  in 
Holland,  were  excessively  fond  of  flowers,  which 
they  planted  in  beds,  each  kind  by  itself,  in  a 
mass  of  bright  color. 

Voi..  II.— 8 1 13 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

“ I think  I yet  see,”  says  Mrs.  Grant  in  her  “ Me- 
moirs of  an  American  Lady,”  “ what  I have  so  often 
beheld  both  in  town  and  country,  a respedtable  mistress  of 
a family  going  out  to  her  garden  in  an  April  morning,  with 
her  great  calash,  her  little  painted  basket  of  seeds,  and 
her  rake  over  her  shoulder,  to  her  garden  labors.  ...  A 
woman  in  very  easy  circumstances,  and  abundantly  gentle 
in  form  and  manners,  would  sow  and  plant  and  rake  inces- 
santly.” 

The  barns  were  of  great  size,  like  those  of 
the  Germans  in  Pennsylvania,  and  there  were 
large  herds  of  horses  and  cattle,  and  fine  or- 
chards. On  the  Philipse  manor  at  Yonkers 
there  were  two  rent  days,  one  at  Philipseburg 
and  the  other  at  Sleepy  Hollow,  where  the 
tenants  appeared  to  pay  in  money  or  in  the 
produce  of  the  land  ; and  after  the  ceremony  of 
paying  was  concluded,  they  were  all  indulged  in 
a great  feast  for  the  rest  of  the  day  in  the 
ancient  feudal  manner. 

The  Cortlandt,  the  Livingston,  and  the  Van 
Rensselaer  manors  were  each  entitled  to  send  a 
representative  to  the  assembly  ; and  in  some  if 
not  all  of  them  the  lord  had  the  privilege  of 
holding  court-leet  and  court  baron,  with  very 
liberal  powers  for  administering  justice  and 
punishing  offences,  which  in  the  early  days  of 
the  colony  extended  to  inflifting  capital  punish- 
ment. 

Albany  and  Scheneftady  were  situated  near 

114 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

each  other,  at  the  eastern  end  of  the  Long 
House  of  the  Iroquois,  and  all  through  colonial 
times  they  were  the  principal  frontier  towns. 
They  were  very  much  alike,  and  both  were  en- 
tirely devoted  to  the  fur  trade ; in  faft,  they 
were  the  centre  of  the  American  fur  trade  at 
that  time.  In  the  early  days  every  house  in 
Albany  was  a trading  store,  with  furs  in  the 
second  story.  The  people  kept  the  trade  to 
themselves  as  much  as  possible,  and  down  to 
the  time  of  the  Revolution,  and  even  after,  no 
outsider  could  transact  business  in  the  little 
towns  without  paying  five  pounds  for  the  privi- 
lege. 

Dutch  Albany  consisted  of  a wide  and  long 
street,  called  Handelaer,  parallel  to  the  river, 
with  the  space  between  it  and  the  river  occupied 
by  gardens.  Another  street,  called  Yonkheer, 
crossed  it  at  right  angles,  leading  up  the  hill  to 
the  fort.  The  houses  were  low,  with  high 
peaked  roofs,  on  which  were  gilded  weather- 
vanes  in  figures  of  horses,  lions,  geese,  and 
sloops. 

The  gable  ends  of  the  houses,  “ notched  like 
steps,”  were  usually  towards  the  street,  and  little 
lawns  and  gardens  surrounded  them.  From  the 
eaves  of  the  roofs  projected  long  water-spouts 
almost  to  the  middle  of  the  street,  which  on  a 
rainy  day  were  very  apt  to  drench  the  passer-by, 
US 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

and  the  date  when  each  house  was  built  was 
usually  let  into  the  brick  or  stone  in  iron  or 
black  brick  figures.  The  black  bricks  were  used 
in  contrast  with  the  red  to  make  flowers  or  pat- 
terns in  the  walls.  The  governor’s  house,  it  is 
said,  had  two  black  brick  hearts  on  it. 

The  stoop  or  porch  in  front  of  each  door 
was  in  summer,  as  in  New  York,  the  principal 
meeting-place,  a sort  of  exchange  or  club  for  all 
the  townsfolk.  It  was  very  churlish  and  rude 
to  pass  a stoop  without  saluting  every  one  who 
was  sitting  on  it,  a custom  which  often  made 
progress  along  the  street  very  slow. 

There  they  sat,  smoking  and  watching  the 
fluttering  and  swinging  of  the  great  weather- 
vanes;  and  as  evening  approached,  tinkling  bells 
announced  that  the  cows  were  coming  home. 
Each  family  had  one  of  these  patient  beasts,  so 
petted  and  tame  that  they  all  returned  from  the 
common  pasture  of  their  own  accord  in  the 
evening,  to  be  milked  at  the  door  under  the 
trees.  They  stayed  by  the  house  all  night, 
licking  the  salt  and  eating  the  vegetables  that 
were  given  them  ; and  after  being  milked  again 
in  the  morning,  walked  tinkling  away  to  their 
pasture. 

The  children  ate  their  supper,  composed 
principally  of  the  milk  of  the  cow  that  had  just 
come  in,  sitting  on  the  steps  of  the  porch  with 

1 16 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

their  bowls  in  their  laps,  while  their  elders  and 
the  youths  and  maidens  sat  on  the  benches 
above,  chatting  and  singing. 

Almost  every  family  of  any  means  had  negro 
slaves  as  house-servants,  who  were  treated  with 
great  kindness,  brought  up  in  the  same  religion 
as  that  of  the  family,  and  often  became  as  at- 
tached and  devoted  to  their  masters  as  sons 
or  daughters.  The  first  New  Year’s  Day  after  a 
negro  woman’s  child  became  three  years  old  it 
was  formally  presented  to  one  of  the  children 
of  the  family.  The  child  to  whom  it  was  given 
immediately  gave  it  a piece  of  money  and  a pair 
of  shoes,  and  from  that  day  the  little  negro  was 
the  child’s  servant.  Every  member  of  a re- 
speftable  family  was  presumed  to  be  supplied 
in  this  way  with  a slave  or  body-servant. 

Most  of  the  young  men  began  life  by  enter- 
ing the  woods  to  trade  for  furs,  and  in  these 
expeditions  they  were  accompanied  by  their 
slaves,  who  often  saved  their  masters’  lives,  or, 
when  wounded  or  sick,  carried  them  on  their 
backs  out  of  the  wilderness. 

The  last  resort  in  punishing  a refraftory  slave 
was  to  sell  him  to  the  West  Indies,  and  such 
was  the  dread  of  this  punishment  among  the 
negroes  that  they  would  sometimes  kill  them- 
selves when  finally  condemned  to  it.  In  the 
town  of  New  York  the  condition  of  the  negroes 
117 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

was  not  so  ideal  as  in  Albany.  But  the  Alban- 
ians, we  are  assured,  although  friendly  and  fa- 
miliar with  their  slaves,  regarded  with  the  great- 
est abhorrence  any  mingling  of  the  blood  of  the 
two  races.  Mulattoes  were  almost  unknown 
until  after  the  Revolution,  when  the  progress 
of  the  British  army  through  the  country  could 
be  traced  by  them. 

In  the  spring  of  the  year  every  boy  and  man 
became  for  a few  weeks  a pigeon  and  wild- 
fowl shooter.  The  wild  pigeons,  which  are 
now  almost  extinft,  existed  in  colonial  times  in 
countless  millions.  They  are  said  to  have  fed 
in  winter  on  the  myrtle  berries  along  the  sea- 
coast  of  the  Southern  colonies,  and  on  the  first 
approach  of  spring  they  began  to  follow  the 
shore,  turning  up  the  valleys  of  all  the  great 
rivers  that  led  northward  to  the  regions  where 
they  spent  the  summer. 

When  the  vast  flocks  reached  Albany,  every 
occupation  and . amusement  was  dropped  and 
the  whole  population  turned  out  for  the  slaugh- 
ter, which,  with  that  of  the  geese  and  ducks, 
lasted  for  several  weeks.  It  was  not  sport,  for 
the  game  was  too  numerous  and  too  easily  killed. 
It  was  shot  down  by  firing  into  the  enormous 
flocks,  and  the  dead  were  collefted  in  the  vil- 
lage in  great  heaps.  In  Cooper’s  novel  of  “ The 
Pioneers”  there  is  an  excellent  description 
118 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

of  this  pigeon-slaughter  in  another  part  of  New 
York,  where  a cannon  was  used  to  fire  into  the 
dense  masses  of  birds  as  they  swept  by,  and  it  is 
not  improbable  that  in  many  cases  this  could 
have  been  done. 

When  the  spring  flight  of  birds  had  ceased, 
the  sturgeon  appeared  in  the  river,  and  the 
people  all  took  to  their  canoes,  following  the 
course  of  the  fish  far  up  the  stream,  spearing 
them  by  torchlight,  and  often  remaining  two 
nights  upon  the  water  until  they  had  filled  their 
boats. 

When  a young  man  had  reached  the  age 
of  about  twenty,  and  thought  of  marrying,  he 
procured  for  himself  a canoe,  forty  or  fifty 
dollars,  and  with  his  negro  started  up  the  river 
into  the  woods.  He  dressed  almost  like  an 
Indian,  and  soon  had  more  than  the  Indian’s 
instinft  in  woodcraft.  His  small  sum  of  money 
was  invested  in  guns,  powder,  rum,  blankets, 
beads,  and  other  articles,  to  barter  for  the 
furs  ; and  his  objeft  was  to  press  far  into  the 
wilderness  and  buy  the  skins  before  they  got 
into  the  hands  of  those  Indians,  usually  Mo- 
hawks, who  habitually  brought  them  down  to 
the  regular  dealers  at  Albany.  These  expe- 
ditions were  usually  made  in  the  spring,  after 
the  winter  trapping  season  of  the  Indians  was 
finished. 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

Paddling  up  the  Hudson  to  the  Mohawk,  the 
first  difficulty  encountered  was  the  high  falls  of 
Cohoes,  ten  miles  above  Albany.  Here  they  un- 
loaded their  canoe  and  carried  it  and  its  cargo 
round  the  falls.  After  that  they  entered  the 
wilderness,  and  penetrated  to  the  Great  Lakes 
or  into  Canada,  passing  many  a carrying-place, 
where  they  dragged  their  property  through 
dense  thickets  which  made  Cohoes  seem  mere 
child’s  play. 

They  could  carry  few  provisions,  and  were 
obliged  to  depend  largely  on  hunting  and  fish- 
ing ; for  on  their  outward  journey  the  canoe 
would  barely  hold  their  articles  of  barter,  and 
on  the  return  it  was  filled  with  furs.  The 
dangers  of  flood  and  field  were  numerous.  An 
upset  of  their  narrow  little  craft  might  send 
all  their  property  to  the  bottom  ; and  the  pos- 
session of  such  a valuable  cargo,  especially  the 
rum,  was  a temptation  to  rival  Indians,  or  even 
white  traders,  to  murder  them. 

They  must  keep  clear  of  the  Frenchman, 
who  was  an  avowed  enemy  and  always  bitterly 
hated  by  the  Dutch,  who  had  won  the  liberty 
of  their  country  against  Catholic  France  and 
Spain.  Their  excursions  direftly  into  Canada 
were  therefore  comparatively  few  ; so  that,  after 
exhausting  the  region  directly  north  of  Albany, 
now  partly  covered  by  the  Adirondack  Moun- 


120 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

tains,  they  made  their  way  to  the  west,  and  even 
far  to  the  southwest  towards  Pennsylvania  and 
Ohio.  They  often  launched  their  canoes  on  the 
Great  Lakes,  paddling  along  the  shores  for  hun- 
dreds of  miles,  and  sometimes  took  the  danger- 
ous chance  of  crossing  one  of  those  inland  seas. 
They  followed  up  streams  and  rivers,  where 
every  day  they  met  with  a great  tree  or  a whole 
mass  of  trees  fallen  across  and  blocking  their 
way,  through  which  they  had  to  cut  with  their 
axes  or  carry  the  canoe  around  them. 

When  the  toilsome  day  was  ended,  they  slept 
by  their  fire  in  the  midst  of  the  ague-breeding 
vapors  of  the  primeval  forest,  devoured  by  mos- 
quitoes and  flies.  The  wolves  sat  round  them 
in  a circle,  kept  at  a distance  by  the  glare  of 
the  fire,  but  howling  at  it  all  night  long.  The 
plenteous  animal  life  of  the  wilderness,  which 
has  now  passed  away,  was  in  those  times  flourish- 
ing in  its  full  vigor ; and  a night  in  the  forest  in 
spring  or  early  summer,  with  the  wolves  howl- 
ing, the  mosquitoes  and  insefts  buzzing  and 
stinging,  and  the  bull-frogs  answering  one  another 
from  every  swamp,  was  an  experience  which, 
according  to  a man’s  taste  and  previous  training, 
would  either  interest  or  disgust  him. 

The  Dutchman  never  quite  equalled  the 
Englishman  or  the  French  Canadian  voyageur 
in  woodcraft  and  love  of  wild  life.  He  never 


I 2 1 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

penetrated  so  far  or  accomplished  so  much. 
The  ocean  and  trade  in  the  tropics  formed  the 
true  field  of  his  enterprise,  and  he  was  seldom 
highly  successful  in  any  other.  But  the  young 
Dutchmen  who  ranged  the  New  York  woods 
did  very  well  in  their  way,  and  when  they  had 
attained  some  distant  spot  far  in  the  interior, 
where  the  furs  could  be  had  cheap  at  first  hand, 
their  patience  and  hereditary  skill  at  bargaining 
procured  a valuable  cargo. 

Then  to  get  home  with  it  was  the  question; 
and  after  incredible  hardships  and  labors,  carry- 
ing places  innumerable,  and  nights  with  the 
mosquitoes  and  wolves,  the  deep-laden  canoe 
was  at  last  dragged  round  Cohoes  Falls  and 
floated  down  to  the  high-peaked  houses  and 
gilded  weather-vanes  at  Albany.  The  boy  who 
had  started  out  with  his  negro  a few  months  be- 
fore had  returned  a man.  Bronzed  and  sturdy 
from  exposure,  sedate  and  calm  from  danger, 
independent  in  bearing,  and  with  a touch  of  the 
Indian’s  austerity  and  reticence,  he  sold  his  furs 
for  what  seemed  to  him  a fortune,  and  was  ready 
to  marry. 

The  next  year  another  expedition  with  slave 
and  canoe  was  made,  and  the  veteran  woodsman 
was  now  very  apt  to  feel  an  irresistible  impulse 
towards  those  enterprises  for  which  his  nation 
had  become  famous.  Going  to  New  York  with 


122 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

his  profits,  he  bought  flour  and  provisions,  and 
procured  for  himself  and  his  new  property  a 
passage  to  the  Bermudas,  where  he  sold  out  at  a 
large  advance,  and,  purchasing  one  of  the  small 
cedar  schooners  which  were  built  in  those 
islands,  he  traded  for  rum,  sugar,  or  molasses  to 
the  West  Indies. 

Afterwards,  perhaps,  he  brought  his  schooner 
home  and  sailed  her  up  and  down  the  Hudson 
for  many  a day  ; or,  satisfied  with  the  spoil  of 
the  forest  and  the  ocean,  he  became  a store- 
keeper in  Albany,  with  a stoop  and  benches 
before  his  door,  and  the  great  spout  pouring  the 
rain  from  the  roof  into  the  middle  of  the  street. 
Sometimes,  determined  on  still  deeper  tranquil- 
lity and  peace,  he  took  unto  himself  a farm  or 
bouwery  in  the  country,  where  he  lived  as  con- 
tentedly as  if  he  had  never  known  the  excite- 
ment of  adventure  and  changing  scene. 

Mrs.  Grant  describes  the  Dutch  at  Albany  as 
often  living  to  a great  age,  which  was  the  natu- 
ral result  of  their  thrift,  cleanliness,  and  con- 
tented dispositions.  Ninety  years  were  fre- 
quently attained,  and  she  knew  several  who 
reached  a hundred.  Like  the  New  Englanders, 
they  all  married  very  early  in  life;  but  children 
were  not  as  numerous  as  in  Massachusetts  and 
Conne&icut. 

The  children,  however,  seem  to  have  had 
123 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

freer  scope,  and  were  not  held  down  so  sternly 
as  they  were  among  the  Puritans.  They  associ- 
ated more  familiarly  with  their  parents,  and  had 
abundance  of  amusement.  The  Albany  Dutch 
children  were  the  inventors  of  that  winter 
amusement  of  coasting  down  hill  on  the  snow 
which  has  since  become  so  universal  in  all  the 
northern  part  of  the  country.  Mrs.  Grant  de- 
scribes it  as  unknown  elsewhere,  and  cannot 
understand  how  any  one  could  take  pleasure  in 
it.  She  tells  us  as  a matter  of  wonder  that  Al- 
banians who  had  been  in  England  and  ought  to 
have  learnt  something  better  would,  on  their 
return  to  their  native  city,  go  out  to  the  hill  in 
winter  and  slide  down  with  the  rest. 

The  Albanians,  young  and  old,  were  much 
devoted  to  this  excitement  which  they  had  in- 
troduced into  the  world.  They  swarmed  on 
the  street  that  led  down  the  hill  from  the  fort, 
one  line  of  children  whirling  by  on  their  sleds, 
while  another  line  was  walking  up  ; the  elder 
people  meanwhile  sitting  wrapped  in  their  furs 
on  those  stoops  which  they  occupied  with 
more  comfort  in  the  summer,  and  indulging 
in  loud  shouts  of  laughter  when  a sled  was 
upset. 

In  that  extraordinary  list  of  American  cus- 
toms and  institutions  which  Mr.  Campbell  as- 
sures us,  in  his  “ Puritan  in  Holland,  England, 
124 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

and  America,”  was  introduced  by  the  Dutch,* 
there  is  no  mention  of  coasting,  although  there 
is  some  evidence  to  prove  its  Dutch  origin  and 
none  whatever  to  prove  the  origin  of  those  he 
mentions.  There  is  also  very  little  doubt  that 
the  New  York  Dutch  gave  us  the  custom  of 
celebrating  New  Year’s  Day,  and  possibly  also 
originated  the  word  crank,  to  describe  a person 
of  unbalanced  mind.  But  to  offset  the  benefi- 
cence of  this  and  the  delightful  pleasure  of 
coasting,  they  were  the  first  to  introduce  negro 
slaves  into  the  country,  and  they  gave  us  that 
deadly  compound  known  as  the  doughnut,  which 
has  wrought  more  destruction  to  American 
stomachs  than  can  be  atoned  for  by  all  the 
benefits  that  Holland  has  conferred. 

In  Albany  the  children  divided  themselves 
into  companies,  containing  as  many  boys  as  girls, 
and  the  brightest  boy  and  girl  were  the  leaders 
of  their  company.  These  associations  managed 
the  amusements  and  arranged  the  excursions  and 
picnics  among  the  hills  and  on  the  river,  and 
there  was  great  rivalry  among  them.  The 
parents  encouraged  them,  and  every  child  was 
permitted  to  entertain  its  company  several  times 
a year.  On  these  occasions  the  parents  went 
away  from  the  house,  which  was  turned  over 


* See  “The  Evolution  of  the  Constitution,”  315. 
125 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

entirely  to  the  children  and  their  feast  of  choco- 
late, cakes,  and  cider. 

Among  people  who  married  so  easily  and  nat- 
urally, unchecked  by  artificial  sentiments  and 
conditions,  bachelors,  as  in  New  England,  were 
looked  down  upon  almost  as  social  outcasts. 
Each  one  lived  in  the  house  of  some  family, 
where  he  was  given  a room.  Mrs.  Grant  de- 
scribes them  as  passing  in  and  out  like  ghosts, 
never  speaking  unless  addressed,  and  seeming 
careless  of  the  things  of  the  world,  like  people 
who  felt  themselves  above  it. 

They  associated  almost  exclusively  with  one 
another,  and  were  often  very  religious,  or  at  least 
had  the  appearance  of  it  ; and  occasionally  one 
would  associate  with  the  family  with  which  he 
lived  and  take  an  interest  in  its  affairs.  There 
were  no  laws,  as  in  New  England,  to  regulate 
these  unfortunates  who  were  not  in  sympathy 
with  the  main  objeft  of  the  community,  and  the 
Dutch  were  tolerant  of  them,  as  they  were  of 
most  people  whom  they  believed  to  be  in  error. 

Their  position,  as  well  as  that  of  the  bachelors 
in  New  England,  reminds  us  very  much  of  those 
animals,  solitary  or  rogue  elephants,  as  they  are 
called,  in  the  African  jungle,  or  buffaloes  on  the 
plains,  which  are  often  found  living  a morose 
existence,  separated  from  the  herd  in  which  the 
natural  life  of  their  species  is  to  be  found.  They 
126 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

have  been  driven  out,  the  naturalists  tell  us,  by 
common  consent,  because  they  would  not  con- 
form to  some  habit  or  condition  necessary  to 
the  preservation  of  the  race.  Similarly,  in 
colonial  times  we  often  find  the  people  living 
such  a simple  life  that  they  instinftively  fol- 
lowed some  of  the  primitive  laws  which  have 
peopled  the  earth. 

But  when  a man  married  in  Albany  he  was 
supposed  to  be  deprived  of  two  pleasures  which 
he  had  before  enjoyed, — coasting  and  pig-  and 
turkey-stealing.  The  people  raised  great  quan- 
tities of  pigs  and  turkeys,  and  when  young  men 
spent  an  evening  at  the  tavern,  their  feast  was  not 
complete  unless  the  roast  pig  or  roast  turkey  had 
been  stolen  from  some  of  their  neighbors,  and 
as  a consequence,  pigs  and  turkeys  w^ere  the  only 
sorts  of  property  that  were  ever  locked  up  in 
that  simple  community.  If  the  owner  could 
catch  the  thief  in  the  aft  and  cudgel  him  it  was 
considered  a great  joke,  and  the  thief  was  in 
honor  bound  to  accept  his  beating  patiently. 

On  one  occasion  a voung  man,  recently  mar- 
ried, heard  a disturbance  among  his  turkeys. 
Rushing  out,  he  found  some  of  his  old  comrades 
robbing  him,  and  from  force  of  habit  joined 
them  in  a similar  raid  on  a neighbor,  and  shared 
the  spoils  with  them  at  the  tavern. 

Another  story  which  the  jolly  Albanians 
127 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

laughed  over  for  many  years  describes  how  some 
people  who  intended  to  dine  slipped  off  to  a 
tavern,  where  others  were  preparing  dinner, 
and  stole  their  pig,  half  roasted,  from  the  spit. 
But  the  last  party,  not  to  be  outdone,  threw  a 
pile  of  shavings  in  front  of  the  tavern  of  their 
despoilers,  set  it  in  a blaze,  shouting  “Fire!” 
and,  when  everybody  was  out  of  the  building, 
recovered  their  pig,  now  completely  roasted,  and 
returned  to  enjoy  it  undisturbed. 

The  home  of  the  Schuylers  was  called  the 
Flats,  a level  stretch  of  fertile  land  about  two 
miles  long,  on  the  west  bank  of  the  Hudson, 
above  Albany.  Lofty  elms  adorned  the  bank 
of  the  river,  which  was  there  a mile  wide,  and 
in  the  middle  was  an  island  with  a sand-bar 
stretching  from  it.  On  this  bar,  in  summer, 
the  bald-headed  eagles,  the  ospreys,  the  herons, 
and  the  curlews  arranged  themselves  in  great 
numbers  and  in  long  rows,  standing  there  all 
day  to  fish  for  perch.  A great  variety  of  ducks, 
white  divers,  and  sawbills  with  scarlet  heads 
swam  about  in  the  water  with  the  young  broods 
they  had  raised  on  the  shore. 

The  house  which  overlooked  this  pleasing 
scene,  backed  by  the  interminable  forest,  was 
quite  large,  built  of  brick,  and  with  a wide  hall- 
way running  completely  through  it  in  the  usual 
style  of  colonial  times.  It  was  full  of  very 
128 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

valuable  furniture,  like  the  Virginia  mansions  ; 
but,  being  a Dutchman’s  house,  the  stoop  or 
portico  was  of  great  importance.  It  had 
benches,  lattice-work,  and  was  covered  with 
vines,  in  which  the  birds  were  encouraged  to 
build  their  nests.  Wrens,  wood-sparrows,  and 
hundreds  of  other  birds  were  protected  round 
the  house. 

Mrs.  Grant,  like  all  other  observers  of  colo- 
nial times,  describes  the  wonderful  abundance 
of  animal  life,  which  has  now  so  largely  disap- 
peared from  America.  She  was  an  English- 
woman, and  well  accustomed  to  the  immense 
numbers  of  animals  and  birds  which  even  to 
this  day  fill  the  fields  of  old  England ; and  yet 
America  impressed  her  in  this  respeft  as  quite 
extraordinary.  “ Life,”  she  says,  “ swarms 
abundant  on  every  side  ; the  inseft  population 
is  numerous  beyond  belief,  and  the  birds  that 
feed  on  them  are  in  proportion  to  their  abund- 
ance.” 

She  spent  much  time  at  the  Flats  and  describes 
how  they  lived  on  the  portico  : 

“ While  breakfasting  or  drinking  tea  in  the  airy  portico 
which  was  often  the  scene  of  these  meals,  birds  were  con- 
stantly gliding  over  the  table  with  a butterfly,  grasshopper, 
or  cicada  in  their  bills  to  feed  their  young,  which  were  chirp- 
ing above.  These  familiar  inmates  brushed  by  without 
ceremony,  while  the  chimney-swallow,  the  martin,  and 
Vol,  II.— 9 129 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

other  hirundines  in  countless  numbers  darted  past  in  pur- 
suit of  this  aerial  population,  while  the  fields  resounded 
with  the  ceaseless  chirping  of  many  gay  insefts  unknown 
to  our  more  temperate  summers.  . . . This  loud  and  not 
unpleasing  inseft  chorus,  with  the  swarms  of  gay  butterflies 
in  constant  motion,  enliven  scenes  to  which  the  prevalence 
of  woods,  rising  ‘ shade  above  shade’  on  every  side,  would 
otherwise  give  a still  and  solemn  aspeft.” 

At  the  back  of  the  house  was  joined  a smaller 
and  lower  one  in  which  the  family  lived  in  the 
cold  winters,  with  the  kitchen  in  a sunken  story 
directly  below  the  dining-room.  At  other 
seasons  the  meals  were  all  cooked  in  out-build- 
ings and  brought  into  the  main  house,  an 
arrangement  which  was  common  in  the  Pennsyl- 
vania and  other  colonial  country  houses.  The 
house  contained,  of  course,  much  silver  plate, 
and  some  very  fine  paintings  which  Mrs.  Grant 
describes  as  of  more  than  usual  excellence. 

The  most  strange  arrangement  of  all  was  the 
bare  skulls  of  horses  and  cattle  set  on  every 
fence-post, — unseemly  ornaments.  But  let  Mrs. 
Grant  tell  of  their  use  : 

“ This  was  not  mere  ornament  either,  but  a most  hos- 
pitable arrangement  for  the  accommodation  of  the  small 
familiar  birds  before  described.  The  jaws  are  fixed  on  the 
pole  and  the  skull  uppermost.  The  wren  thus  seeing  a skull 
placed,  never  fails  to  enter  by  the  orifice,  which  is  too  small 
to  admit  the  hand  of  an  infant,  lines  the  pericranium  with 
small  twigs  and  horse-hair,  and  there  lays  her  eggs  in  full 

I3° 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

security.  It  is  very  amusing  to  see  the  little  creatures 
carelessly  go  out  and  in  at  this  little  aperture,  though  you 
should  be  standing  immediately  beside  it.  Not  satisfied 
with  providing  these  singular  asylums  for  their  feathered 
friends,  the  negroes  never  fail  to  make  a small  round  hole 
in  the  crown  of  every  old  hat  they  can  lay  their  hands  on, 
and  nail  it  to  the  end  of  the  kitchen  for  the  same  purpose. 
You  often  see  in  such  a one,  at  once,  thirty  or  forty  of  these 
odd  little  domiciles,  with  the  inhabitants  busily  going  in 
and  out. 

“ Besides  all  these  salutary  provisions  for  the  domestic 
comfort  of  the  birds,  there  was,  in  clearing  the  way  for 
their  first  establishment,  a tree  always  left  in  the  middle  of 
the  back  yard  for  their  sole  emolument,  this  tree  being 
purposely  pollarded  at  midsummer,  when  all  the  branches 
were  full  of  sap.  Wherever  there  had  been  a branch  the 
decay  of  the  inside  produced  a hole,  and  every  hole  was 
the  habitation  of  a bird.  These  were  of  various  kinds, 
some  of  which  had  a pleasing  note ; but  on  the  whole 
their  songsters  are  far  inferior  to  ours.  I rather  dwell  on 
these  minutite,  as  they  not  only  mark  the  peculiarities  of 
the  country,  but  convey  very  truly  the  image  of  a people 
not  too  refined  for  happiness,  which  in  the  process  of 
elegant  luxury  is  apt  to  die  of  disgust.” 

The  wren,  of  which  Mrs.  Grant  speaks  so 
frequently,  was  in  the  colonial  period  and  down 
to  the  time  of  the  civil  war  very  numerous  about 
all  country  places  in  America.  It  is  the  most 
interesting  and  charming  of  all  birds,  and  has 
delighted  human  hearts  in  every  nation  for  a 
thousand  years.  Its  sprightly  neatness,  appeal- 
ing looks  and  gestures,  fearlessness,  and,  at  the 

131 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

same  time,  apparent  love  for  man  and  his  habi- 
tations, have  led  us  to  ascribe  to  it  all  manner 
of  qualities  and  to  invent  romances  for  its  life. 
Jenny  Wren  was  one  of  the  names  the  English 
had  for  it,  and  in  France  it  is  said  to  have  more 
than  a dozen  pet  names  among  the  people.  But 
with  us  it  is  now  seldom  seen,  except  in  remote 
places  and  solitudes.  Something — perhaps  dis- 
gust at  our  artificial,  strained  life,  or  the  detest- 
able English  sparrow — has  driven  it  from  nearly 
all  our  country  homes. 

In  the  home  of  the  Schuylers,  as  described 
by  Mrs.  Grant,  we  notice  that  same  ability  to 
enjoy  country  pursuits  and  create  pleasures  and 
enlightened  surroundings  out  of  one’s  own  re- 
sources which  we  found  in  Virginia.  The 
Schuyler  house  was  constantly  full  of  visitors, — 
prominent  officials  of  the  colony,  military  men, 
travellers,  and  people  connected  with  Indian 
negotiations.  The  family  were  all  interested  in 
the  Indians,  and  even  Mrs.  Schuyler  devoted 
considerable  time  to  studying  their  habits  and 
character. 

Having  no  children  of  their  own,  they  adopted 
many  from  time  to  time,  whom  they  brought 
up  with  the  greatest  care  and  started  in  life, 
always  giving  them  furniture  and  a slave. 
Adoption  was  very  common  at  that  time,  for  in 
those  natural  conditions  children  were  not  re- 


i32 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

garded  as  a burden.  Few  people  had  too  many 
of  them,  and  any  who  found  their  families  too 
large  could  easily  dispose  of  some  to  those  who 
were  not  so  well  blessed.  The  Schuylers,  Mrs. 
Grant  says,  always  adopted  the  children  of 
friends  or  relatives  who  had  a superfluity.  They 
brought  up  in  this  way  fifteen,  besides  those 
who  came  to  live  with  them  only  for  a year  or 
two  to  relieve  temporarily  an  overcrowded  home 
or  to  enjoy  the  educational  advantages  of  the 
society  at  the  Schuyler  house. 

Near  the  house  a large  field  was  left  unculti- 
vated as  a sort  of  common,  where  visiting  In- 
dians or  travellers  passing  to  and  fro  to  Canada 
could  camp.  Being  on  the  great  highway  to 
Canada,  there  was  seldom  a time  from  spring  to 
autumn  when  this  common  was  unoccupied. 
The  soldiers  in  passing  always  stopped  there. 
Every  summer  there  was  an  encampment  of 
regular  or  provincial  troops,  and  when  the 
troops  had  gone  northward,  a colony  of  the 
women  and  children  of  their  families  remained. 
To  all  these  campers,  whether  white  or  red, 
vegetables,  fruit,  and  milk  were  freely  given 
from  the  abundant  supplies  of  the  farm. 

Sometimes  in  winter  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Schuyler, 
especially  in  their  early  life,  went  down  to  New 
York  to  enjoy  the  society,  which  Mrs.  Grant 
describes  as  more  varied  and  polished  than  in 
G3 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

any  other  part  of  the  continent.  During  the 
long  French  and  Indian  wars  New  York  was  the 
head-quarters  of  the  British  regulars,  and  the 
officers,  having  few  duties  in  winter,  devoted 
themselves  to  pleasure.  They  were  sometimes 
profligate,  we  are  told,  but  never  ignorant  or 
low-bred,  and  among  the  higher  ranks  of  them 
Mrs.  Grant  found  many  finished  gentlemen  who 
had  added  experience,  reading,  and  reflection  to 
their  natural  talents. 

Later  in  life  the  Schuylers  were  always  at 
home  on  their  country  place,  which  in  many 
ways  resembled  a Virginia  plantation.  Their 
servants  seem  to  have  been  all  negro  slaves 
brought  up  in  the  family,  to  which  they  showed 
the  greatest  devotion.  There  were  the  old  negro 
who  made  and  mended  the  shoes  for  everybody, 
a carpenter,  a horse-breaker,  and  a blacksmith 
who  shod  the  horses  and  mended  tools.  Others 
had  charge  of  the  fishery,  which  was  an  impor- 
tant department,  raised  hemp  and  tobacco,  or 
presided  over  the  spinning  and  cider-making. 
Apparently  they  were  more  skilful  and  trust- 
worthy than  Southern  slaves. 

Mrs.  Schuyler  was  a woman  of  strong  charac- 
ter, intelligent,  fond  of  reading,  and  well  in- 
formed in  colonial  politics  and  Indian  questions. 
She  got  more  out  of  her  country  life  on  the  edge 
of  a wilderness  than  most  people  can  now  gain 
134 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

in  the  heart  of  a metropolis.  She  managed  a 
very  large  household  of  slaves,  visitors,  and  chil- 
dren ; and,  as  we  read  the  account  of  her  duties 
and  pleasures  on  a summer’s  day,  we  cannot  but 
think  of  the  modern  women  whose  nerves  break 
down  with  the  management  of  three  or  four 
domestics,  or  who  have  no  time  for  amusement 
unless  they  live  in  an  apartment  house  in  winter 
and  a hotel  in  summer. 

Mrs.  Schuyler  began  the  day  with  reading, 
and  breakfasted  early.  A short  time  was  then 
devoted  to  giving  orders  about  her  household, 
and  she  usually  had  some  young  woman,  the 
daughter  of  a friend  or  relative,  who  afted  as 
her  executive  officer.  Her  establishment  had 
been  so  long  well  regulated  and  all  her  people 
so  well  disciplined  that  its  operation  was  very 
smooth.  She  read  again  until  eleven,  and  then 
joined  her  guests  and  Mr.  Schuyler  to  discuss 
general  topics, — the  operations  of  the  army,  In- 
dian treaties,  and  politics. 

In  these  conversations  she  and  her  husband 
were  able  to  give  most  valuable  information  and 
advice  to  officers  and  officials,  who  often  made 
an  excuse  of  a summer  visit  to  receive  this  in- 
struftion.  Young  soldiers  were  told  of  the  dif- 
ficulties of  campaigning  in  a wilderness  so  differ- 
ent from  anything  to  which  they  had  been  ac- 
customed, and  were  warned  of  the  Indian 
135 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

methods  of  warfare  which  had  been  so  fatal  to 
Braddock  and  his  expedition. 

From  her  guests  she  went  to  give  audience  to 
new  settlers  who  were  taking  up  land  and  about 
to  become  tenants  of  the  family,  retainers  and 
followers  of  all  sorts,  and  people  who  were 
camping  on  the  common  and  needed  advice 
and  assistance.  Dinner  was  at  two  o’clock, 
when  family,  adopted  children,  friends,  relations, 
visitors,  and  perhaps  some  travellers  who  were 
passing  by  that  day  sat  down  to  a repast  which 
was  plain  but  very  varied  and  abundant.  There 
was  none  of  the  excessive  feasting  which  we 
read  of  in  other  places  in  colonial  times. 

The  defeft,  however,  among  the  Schuylers 
seems  to  have  been  that  they  were  a little  too 
serious  ; and  even  Mrs.  Grant  admits  that  it 
would  have  been  well  to  have  had  more  gayety. 
In  the  afternoon  visitors  came  out  from  Albany, 
usually  young  people  to  see  the  children.  Walks 
and  excursions  followed,  while  Mrs.  Schuyler 
sat  on  the  portico  reading  or  talking. 

Such  a life  implies  considerable  expense,  and 
in  those  days  there  were  few  interest-bearing 
investments  by  which  people  nowadays  live. 
But  agriculture,  which  has  degenerated  almost 
to  the  occupation  of  a peasantry,  was  then  very 
profitable,  and  the  resources  of  a great  estate, 
even  when  it  was  largely  composed  of  wild 
136 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

land,  surprisingly  abundant.  In  all  the  Middle 
and  Southern  colonies  there  were  many  moder- 
ate-sized farms  from  which  the  owners,  besides 
having  a home,  all  they  wanted  to  eat,  and  a 
great  deal  of  what  they  wanted  to  wear,  re- 
ceived an  income  of  two  or  three  thousand  dollars 
a year.  Rochefoucauld  describes  the  farm  of 
Davies  Randolph,  on  the  James  River  in  Vir- 
ginia, which,  though  containing  only  three  hun- 
dred and  fifty  acres  of  cultivated  land,  yielded 
its  owner  eighteen  hundred  dollars  in  the  worst 
years,  and  three  thousand  five  hundred  dollars 
in  the  best. 

The  Schuyler  estate  seems  to  have  furnished 
large  supplies  in  the  way  of  ordinary  provisions, 
and,  besides  this,  the  game  of  the  neighboring 
wilderness  was  an  additional  resource.  The 
Indians,  who  were  very  friendly  and  grateful 
for  the  favors  received,  sent  in  large  quantities 
of  venison  and  smaller  game.  The  slaves  were 
constantly  hunting,  carried  guns  when  they  went 
to  look  for  the  cows  or  on  any  other  errand 
that  took  them  away  from  the  house,  and  seldom 
returned  empty-handed,  and  the  river  was  full 
of  fish. 

The  great  supply  of  game  in  those  times  added 
not  a little  to  the  prosperity  of  the  colonies,  and 
game  might  even  now  become  a valuable  source 
of  food  and  profit,  as  well  as  pleasure,  by  proper 

137 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

preserving  ; for  there  are  millions  of  acres  of  land 
in  the  United  States  which  are  fit  for  nothing 
else. 

In  winter  the  slaves  of  Mr.  Schuyler  and  of 
his  two  brothers,  who  had  places  near  by,  united 
in  cutting  and  carrying  timber  to  the  saw-mills, 
where  it  was  made  into  planks  and  staves,  which 
were  put  on  a vessel  for  the  West  Indies. 
Flour  and  salted  provisions  were  added,  and  a 
member  of  the  family  went  with  the  cargo. 
Any  slaves  who  had  proved  themselves  too  re- 
fractory for  endurance  were  also  taken  aboard  ; 
and  the  lading  of  this  ship  every  spring  was 
such  a terror  to  all  the  negroes  that  it  usually 
resulted  in  a temporary  reform  of  even  the 
worst. 

Arrived  at  the  islands,  a return  cargo  of 
wine,  rum,  sugar,  coffee,  chocolate,  and  other 
products  was  taken  on,  and  all  that  was  not 
needed  by  the  family  or  their  friends  sold  at 
Albany.  The  return  of  the  vessel  and  the  dis- 
tribution of  the  cargo  was  one  of  the  great 
events  of  the  year  ; and  visitors,  in  return  for 
hospitality,  were  constantly  sending  presents  of 
wine,  fruit,  oysters,  or  whatever  was  choice  at 
their  homes. 

In  time  the  lumber  industry  of  the  river  in- 
creased. The  logs  were  made  into  great  rafts, 
which  floated  down  majestically  with  the  cur- 

138 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

rent.  The  man  in  charge  lived  upon  the  raft 
in  a little  house  with  his  family  ; and  it  was  a 
pretty  sight  on  a fine  day  to  see  the  mother 
calmly  spinning  near  the  door,  the  children 
sporting  about  over  the  logs,  and  the  father 
fishing. 

In  the  neighborhood  of  the  Schuyler  estate 
and  all  through  the  colony  Dutch  remained  the 
language  of  most  of  the  people  until  the  Revo- 
lution, and  then  was  slowly  replaced  by  English. 
There  seem  to  have  been  some  efforts  made  to 
encourage  the  acceptance  of  English,  for  in  1776 
we  read  of  children  punished  in  school  for 
speaking  Dutch.  In  general  it  may  be  said  that 
the  Dutch  characteristics  held  their  own  quite 
strongly  until  about  the  year  1800.  As  late  as 
1840  there  were  still  a great  many  old  people 
who  spoke  Dutch  almost  exclusively,  and,  as  in 
the  case  of  the  Pennsylvania  Germans,  their 
language  had  become  a debased  dialed,  full  of 
English  words,  and  not  worth  preserving. 

The  concentration  of  the  land  in  a few  hands 
helped  to  preserve  the  Dutch  characteristics  and 
held  back  in  an  inferior  position  the  province 
that  was  capable  of  being  the  greatest  of  all. 
The  Dutch  population  was  very  slow  to  enter 
the  Revolution,  and  the  toryism  or  indifference 
of  New  York  was  a cause  of  much  anxiety  to 
the  patriots.  But  there  were  some  individuals 
i39 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

who  were  very  earnest  and  forward,  Alexander 
Hamilton,  John  Jay,  Alexander  McDougal,  Isaac 
Sears,  Philip  Livingston,  J.  Morin  Scott,  and 
George  Clinton,  with  whom  was  associated  an 
eminent  Dutchman,  General  Philip  Schuyler. 
Although  founded  as  early  as  the  New  England 
colonies  and  almost  as  early  as  Virginia,  New 
York  for  some  time  after  the  Revolution  held 
only  the  fifth  place  in  population  and  impor- 
tance. 

In  1780  efforts  were  made  to  break  up  the 
land  system,  and  laws  were  passed  abolishing 
the  feudal  tenures.  But  the  patroons  and  land- 
lords avoided  these  afts  by  putting  feudal  ten- 
ures in  their  leases.  In  1812  another  attempt 
was  made,  but  without  success,  and  the  irrita- 
tion among  the  people  increased.  The  New 
Englanders  had  now  been  overflowing  into  New 
York  for  some  years.  They  began  to  come 
about  the  time  of  the  Stamp  Aft  difficulties, 
attrafted  by  the  fertile  land,  and  the  migration 
steadily  increased.  More  vigorous,  keen,  and 
aggressive  than  the  Dutch,  filled  with  hatred  of 
aristocracy  and  landlordism,  and  forever  talking 
of  liberty  and  independence,  they  were  by  no 
means  welcome  either  to  the  old  ruling  class  or 
to  the  masses  of  the  people. 

They  were  mostly  rural  Yankees,  impudent, 
inquisitive,  grasping,  sharp,  drawling  in  speech, 
140 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

and  utterly  without  manners, — a class  which  has 
now  fortunately  passed  away,  but  which  once 
furnished  the  stock  material  for  Charles  Dickens 
and  other  English  writers  who  ridiculed  Ameri- 
cans. Occasionally,  in  remote  parts  of  New 
England,  you  may  find  survivors  of  this  class, 
and  if  one  should  fasten  himself  on  you,  as  they 
are  apt  to  do,  you  will  never  forget  him. 

Mrs.  Grant  describes  their  arrival  and  the 
terrible  break  they  caused  in  the  happiness  of 
her  own  family,  as  well  as  in  that  of  all  the 
people  whom  she  knew.  “ Conceited,  litigi- 
ous, selfish  beyond  measure,  vulgar,  insolent, 
and  truly  disagreeable,”  as  she  calls  them,  they 
squatted  on  the  land  as  they  pleased,  over- 
reached in  every  bargain,  and  railed  at  aristo- 
crats and  “ King  George’s  Red  Coats.” 

“ Obadiah  or  Zephaniah,  from  Hampshire  or  Conne&i- 
cut,  came  in  without  knocking,  sat  down  without  invi- 
tation, and  lighted  their  pipe  without  ceremony ; then 
talked  of  buying  land  ; and  finally  began  a discourse  on 
politics  which  would  have  done  honour  to  Praise  God  Bare- 
bones,  or  any  of  the  members  of  his  parliament.”  (“  Me- 
moirs of  an  American  Lady,”  p.  286.) 

Mrs.  Knight,  a bright  woman,  who  kept  a 
diary  of  a journey  she  made  on  horseback  in 
1704  from  Boston  to  New  York,  shows  the 
same  dislike  for  the  rural  Yankee.  At  a house 
where  she  stopped  for  the  night,  the  landlady, 
141 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

instead  of  telling  her  that  she  would  be  received 
or  attending  to  her  wants,  drawled  out, — 

“ Law  for  me,  what  in  the  world  brings  you  here  this 
time  a night  ? I never  see  a woman  on  the  Rode  so 
Dreadful  late  in  all  my  versall  life.  Who  are  you  ? 
Where  are  you  going  ?” 

Then,  when  Mrs.  Knight’s  guide  appeared, 
she  turned  to  him  with,  “ Lawful  heart,  John,  is 
it  you  ?”  and  kept  up  her  questions  until  Mrs. 
Knight,  unable  to  endure  it  any  longer,  stopped 
her. 

At  one  point  in  her  journey  she  met  a girl 
who  had  been  riding  with  her  father  thirty 
miles  a day  on  a lean,  hard-trotting  horse,  with 
only  a bag  for  a saddle.  “ Lawful  heart,  father,” 
she  said,  “ this  bare  mare  hurts  me  dingily. 
I’m  dreadful  sore,  I vow.” 

But  these  horrible  people  were  the  making 
of  New  York,  which  would  never  have  pros- 
pered under  her  heavy  Dutch  population  ; and, 
as  Mrs.  Grant  laments,  they  soon  converted  the 
Dutch  to  their  detestable  habits.  The  long 
spouts  which  poured  the  water  from  the  eaves 
on  people  in  the  streets  of  Albany  disappeared, 
and  pifturesqueness  and  slow  thrift  gave  place 
to  energy  and  enterprise.  Irving  has  described 
the  astonishment  with  which  Rip  Van  Winkle, 
when  he  awoke  from  his  long  sleep,  saw  the 
evidences  of  this  change. 

142 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

In  spite  of  its  large  foreign  population,  the 
Anglo-Saxon  has  always  been  the  best  as  well 
as  the  final  controlling  influence  in  New  York. 
The  Dutchman  had  his  day  of  power,  but  the 
descendants  of  the  Vikings  slowly,  surely,  and 
without  effort  or  haste  absorbed  both  him  and 
his  works  until,  in  the  constitution,  laws,  and 
framework  of  the  State,  there  remains  scarcely  a 
trace  of  the  Hollander.  The  Irishman  still  has 
his  day  of  political  corruption  on  Manhattan 
Island,  and  a most  evil  one  it  is  ; but  he  too  will 
melt  away  before  the  race  that  has  never  had  its 
equal  in  the  world. 

This  influence  of  the  New  Englander  was 
strikingly  shown  in  the  New  York  Constitu- 
tional Convention  of  1821,  already  referred  to 
in  the  chapter  on  Connecticut.  Out  of  its  one 
hundred  and  twenty-six  members,  thirty-two 
were  natives  of  Connecticut  and  nine  of  Mas- 
sachusetts. 

The  Yankees  could  not  endure  being  tenants 
under  the  system  which  gave  the  landlord  every 
advantage  and  made  the  tenant  his  slave.  Their 
agitation  increased  every  year  against  the  leases 
and  contracts,  which  were  becoming  more  bur- 
densome than  ever  under  the  ownership  of  a 
great  corporation  called  the  Holland  Land  Com- 
pany. 

After  the  Revolution  the  fertile  traCts  in  the 
143 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

interior  of  New  York  attrafted  speculators  from 
all  parts  of  the  country,  who  hoped  to  enjoy  the 
advantages  of  laws  which  were  so  favorable  to  the 
landlord,  and  the  Hollanders  joined  in  the  rush, 
with  the  aid  of  this  company.  A map  of  the 
State,  prepared  in  1775,  shows  the  central  por- 
tion in  the  lake  country,  the  old  home  of  the 
Iroquois,  laid  out  in  large  blocks,  some  num- 
bered and  others  called  Virgil,  Homer,  Dryden, 
Solon,  Ovid,  Scipio,  and  similar  names,  which 
are  still  retained  by  many  of  the  towns  in  that 
region. 

The  journal  of  John  Lincklaen,  who  was  the 
agent  of  the  Holland  Company,  gives  us  glimpses 
of  these  speculators : Cazenove,  from  whom 
Cazenovia  was  named,  and  others  who  were  en- 
thusiastically Wandering  through  the  woods  with 
guides  and  surveyors,  expefting  great  wealth 
from  tenants  and  the  maple-sugar  industry. 

Cooper’s  novel  “ The  Chain-Bearer”  gives 
another  point  of  view  of  the  life  of  some  of 
the  great  landlords  and  their  difficulties.  Many 
of  them,  however,  were  successful,  notably  the 
Wadsworth  family  from  Connecticut,  who  estab- 
lished themselves  in  the  beautiful  valley  of  the 
Genesee,  where  their  descendants  still  live,  and 
where  there  are  still  interesting  country  places, 
fox-hunting,  and  rural  pleasures, — rather  un- 
usual now  in  America. 


144 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

In  1836,  under  the  influence  of  the  Yankees, 
the  resistance  to  the  land  system  became  so  pro- 
nounced that  when  a rumor  was  started  that  the 
Holland  Company  intended  to  enforce  its  liens 
against  the  people,  a mob  in  Chautauqua  County 
destroyed  the  land  office  with  all  its  records. 
Three  years  afterwards,  when  the  Van  Rensse- 
laers  attempted  to  colled!  long  arrears  of  rent 
and  to  enforce  other  rights  which  would  give 
them  a quarter  title  to  the  land,  there  was  an- 
other outbreak,  accompanied  by  bloodshed,  and 
the  assistance  of  the  militia  had  to  be  obtained. 

In  these  disturbances  William  H.  Seward  had 
his  first  opportunity  for  distindlion,  and  dis- 
played those  qualities  which  afterwards  gave 
him  a statesman’s  career  in  the  civil  war.  But 
the  land  question  was  settled  very  slowly,  and 
as  late  as  18 66  the  militia  had  to  be  called  out 
to  stop  a land  riot  in  Albany  County. 

In  consequence  of  the  influx  of  the  New 
Englanders  and  their  progressiveness.  New  York 
grew  very  rapidly,  and  by  the  time  the  Erie 
Canal  was  completed,  in  1825,  was  the  most 
populous  State  in  the  Union.  The  canal  added 
another  chapter  of  atrocious  political  corruption 
to  the  long  history  of  this  sin  in  the  Empire 
Commonwealth;  but  the  effeft  of  this  water  high- 
way on  material  prosperity  was  enormous,  and 
modern  New  York,  as  we  know  it  to-day,  is  the 
VOL.  II. — IO  145 


Manhattan  and  the  Tappan  Zee 

result.  Farm  produ&s  on  the  line  of  the  canal 
increased  fifty  per  cent,  after  1825,  villages  and 
factories  sprang  up  by  it,  land  rose  in  value, 
population  increased  by  rapid  strides,  while  the 
canal  poured  the  produfts  of  the  boundless 
West  into  New  York  harbor  to  increase  her 
commerce  and  ships,  and  all  this  was  followed 
by  railroads,  which  performed  the  same  task. 


c^\ptKorpe'Hovy5c  •'Ha.rlsm+Uight* 


CHAPTER  IX 

PURITAN  AND  CATHOLIC  ON  THE  CHESAPEAKE 

y^BOUT  twenty-five  years  after  Virginia  was 
established  on  the  southern  part  of  Ches- 
apeake Bay,  the  family  of  Lord  Baltimore  took 
possession  of  the  northern  half  of  the  bay  for 
their  colony,  called  Maryland.  As  the  Balti- 
mores  were  Roman  Catholics,  there  has  been 
much  discussion  of  their  motives  in  founding 
their  colony ; and  the  colony,  as  the  only  at- 
tempt to  establish  a Roman  Catholic  com- 
munity in  the  British  possessions,  had  a very 
peculiar  history. 

George  Calvert,  the  first  Lord  Baltimore,  oc- 
cupied a rather  curious  position  in  England.  It 
has  been  generally  supposed  that  he  was  born, 
baptized,  and  brought  up  in  the  Church  of 
England.  He  was  a graduate  of  Trinity  Col- 
lege, Oxford,  and,  after  travelling  on  the  conti- 
nent of  Europe,  he  became  secretary  to  Sir 
i47 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

Robert  Cecil,  who  had  been  one  of  the  secre- 
taries of  state  under  Queen  Elizabeth,  and  be- 
came Lord  High  Treasurer  and  Earl  of  Salis- 
bury under  James  I.  Cecil  seems  to  have 
thought  highly  of  young  Calvert,  and  he  was 
advanced  in  public  employment  until  he  became 
a favorite  and  trusted  counsellor  of  James  I., 
who  made  him  his  Secretary  of  State.  He  was 
also  a member  of  the  House  of  Commons, 
where  he  devoted  himself  to  obtaining  supplies 
for  the  king  and  to  supporting  his  policy. 

Calvert  was  soon  interested  in  colonization 
schemes,  and  was  a member  of  the  Virginia 
Company.  He  also  obtained  in  1614  a grant 
of  part  of  Newfoundland,  and  called  his  prov- 
ince Avalon,  a name  which  it  still  retains. 

Attrafted  by  the  valuable  fisheries  of  the 
Banks,  he  seems  to  have  expefted  to  make  a 
fortune  out  of  this  enterprise,  or  to  establish  a 
refuge  for  the  English  Roman  Catholics.  He 
spent  twenty-five  thousand  pounds  of  his  private 
fortune  in  building  granaries,  storehouses,  and  a 
handsome  house  for  his  own  residence,  without 
at  all  realizing  the  barren  nature  of  the  country. 

About  the  same  time  that  he  received  this 
grant  of  Avalon  he  publicly  announced  that  he 
had  become  a Roman  Catholic,  and  immediately 
resigned  his  office  of  Secretary  of  State.  There 
has  been  much  discussion  and  not  a little  violent 
148 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

controversy  among  the  Protestants  and  Catholics 
of  Maryland  about  this  resignation.  The  view 
usually  maintained  by  the  Catholics  is  that  Cal- 
vert had  been  recently  convinced  of  the  truth 
of  Romanism,  and  conscientiously  announced 
his  conversion,  at  the  same  time  resigning  an 
office  he  could  no  longer  consistently  hold  under 
a Protestant  king,  and  was  willing  to  sacrifice 
all  his  prospefts  of  advancement  for  the  sake  of 
his  new  faith. 

But  the  evidence,  which  has  been  well  sum- 
marized by  Mr.  J.  P.  Kennedy  in  the  pamphlets 
he  wrote  in  the  controversy,  seems  to  show 
that  Calvert  had  been  a Roman  Catholic  for 
some  years  before  he  resigned,  and  that  he  was 
forced  to  resign  by  a movement  in  Parliament 
to  drive  from  office  all  persons  of  Catholic  pro- 
clivities. 

The  contest  among  the  members  of  the  Church 
of  England,  the  Puritans,  and  the  Roman  Cath- 
olics was  at  that  time  raging  with  great  violence 
in  England,  and  it  was  a question  which  should 
capture  and  control  the  government.  Under 
Queen  Mary,  the  Catholics  had  been  in  power 
and  had  slaughtered  the  Protestants  without 
mercy.  Under  Queen  Elizabeth,  the  Protestants 
of  the  Church  of  England  held  the  government 
and  took  their  turn  at  persecuting ; but  the 
Catholics  continued  the  struggle,  and  were  as- 
149 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

sisted  by  the  kings  of  France  and  Spain,  under 
whom  the  Spanish  Armada  was  sent,  in  the 
hope  of  making  England  papist  at  once  and 
forever. 

Although  this  great  attempt  of  the  Armada 
failed,  plots  of  all  sorts  continued.  The  Pope 
claimed  the  power  to  depose  monarchs,  and, 
when  deposed,  their  subjefts  were  at  liberty  to 
assassinate  them.  He  deposed  Elizabeth,  and 
an  attempt  was  made  on  her  life  by  an  English 
Catholic.  In  the  reign  of  James  I.,  a few  years 
before  Calvert’s  resignation,  some  Catholics  had 
organized  the  gunpowder  plot  to  blow  up  Par- 
liament. To  defend  the  country  against  these 
attempts,  and  to  retain  possession  of  the  govern- 
ment, the  Protestant  Parliament  had  enafted 
very  severe  measures  against  the  Roman  Cath- 
olics, with  the  intention  of  extirpating  them 
from  England.  They  were  prohibited  from 
performing  the  rites  of  their  religion  in  public, 
and  monthly  lines  and  confiscation  of  their  prop- 
erty were  inflifted  on  them. 

These  laws  were  passed  by  the  Puritans  and 
the  members  of  the  Church  of  England.  But 
King  James,  as  head  of  the  English  Church, 
found  the  Puritan  party  growing  too  strong  to 
suit  his  purposes,  and  he  often  favored  the  Cath- 
olics as  an  offset  against  the  Puritans.  He  com- 
promised their  fines  and  forfeitures,  and  had 
150 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

several  avowed  or  secret  Catholics  in  high  office 
as  his  advisers. 

Calvert  seems  to  have  been  one  of  these.  He 
was  of  great  assistance  to  the  king,  and  favored 
the  marriage  of  the  Prince  of  Wales  to  the 
Spanish  Infanta.  He  also,  no  doubt,  was  able 
to  give  much  aid  to  the  Catholics,  save  them 
from  difficulties  and  loss  of  property,  and  help 
to  secure  more  toleration  for  them  from  the 
government.  But  Buckingham  and  the  Puritan 
party  in  Parliament  were  determined  to  enforce 
with  greater  striftness  the  laws  against  the  peo- 
ple who  were  believed  to  be  the  enemies  of 
England,  and  Calvert  was  compelled  to  resign 
his  office. 

There  had  been  nothing  dishonorable  in  his 
conduit  of  keeping  his  new  religion  to  himself, 
although  it  was  not  so  dramatic  and  striking  as 
the  sudden  conversion  and  conscientious  resig- 
nation for  which  some  of  his  admirers  contend. 
Hundreds  of  English  Catholics  at  that  time  kept 
their  religion  a secret,  and,  if  they  had  property 
to  preserve  or  any  worldly  ambition  or  desire 
to  gratify,  secrecy  was  absolutely  necessary. 
Calvert  took  the  part  of  wise  discretion  and 
moderation,  which  enabled  him  to  be  of  service 
to  his  own  people,  and  he  could  have  been  of 
no  service  to  them  whatever  if  he  had  not  been 

Hi 


in  power. 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

He  had  attained  to  such  a position  of  emi- 
nence that  the  public  announcement  of  his  re- 
ligion did  him  comparatively  little  harm.  He 
suffered  from  none  of  the  fines  and  confiscations 
which  were  inflidted  on  the  obscure  or  unim- 
portant. On  the  contrary,  the  king  had  such  an 
appreciation  of  his  ability  that  he  retained  him 
in  the  Privy  Council,  raised  him  to  the  Irish 
peerage  the  next  year  as  Baron  of  Baltimore, 
and  he  sold  his  office  of  Secretary  of  State  to  his 
successor,  after  the  manner  of  the  time,  for  six 
thousand  pounds. 

He  wished  to  go  to  his  province  of  Avalon  in 
Newfoundland,  but  the  king  detained  him  ; for 
as  an  avowed  Romanist  he  was  almost  of  as 
much  use  to  the  king  as  he  had  been  before  the 
announcement  of  his  religion. 

Charles  I.,  who  succeeded  King  James  in 
1625,  continued  the  same  favor.  Calvert  was 
not  required  to  take  the  oath  acknowledging 
the  supremacy  of  the  Church  of  England,  and 
he  got  leave  to  embark  for  his  province  of 
Avalon.  He  soon  returned  to  England,  and  in 
1628  went  out  again  to  Newfoundland,  taking 
with  him  his  family  and  a number  of  colonists. 
He  probably  intended  that  his  province  should 
be  a source  of  profit  to  himself  and  at  the  same 
time  a refuge  for  English  Roman  Catholics,  just 
as  William  Penn  intended  that  Pennsylvania 

152 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

should  advance  his  own  fortunes  and  at  the 
same  time  shelter  the  Ouakers. 

He,  however,  soon  saw  the  hopelessness  of 
accomplishing  anything  among  the  fogs  and  ice- 
bergs, and,  abandoning  Avalon,  he  sailed  to 
Virginia  with  the  intention,  apparently,  of  either 
settling  there  or  of  exploring  the  country  to  see 
what  part  of  it  he  should  ask  a grant  of  from 
the  king.  His  real  intentions  on  this  as  on 
other  occasions  of  his  life  are  obscure.  His 
own  position,  as  well  as  that  of  the  Catholics  in 
England,  had  made  discretion  and  silence  habit- 
ual, and  it  was  seldom  safe  for  him  to  make  his 
purposes  conspicuous. 

But  he  had  scarcely  landed  in  that  royalist  and 
Episcopal  colony  when  the  officials  offered  him  the 
oath  of  allegiance,  which  also  acknowledged  the 
supremacy  of  the  Church  of  England,  and  on  his 
refusal  to  take  it,  he  was  quietly  told  that  he  must 
depart.  He  had  attempted  to  enter  the  place  of 
all  others  where  his  presence  would  be  most  re- 
sented, and  there  is  evidence  of  some  indignation 
among  the  Virginians,  and  a record  that  Thomas 
Tindall  was  to  be  pilloried  for  two  hours  “ for 
giving  my  Lord  Baltimore  the  lie  and  threaten- 
ing to  knock  him  down.” 

Leaving  his  wife  and  some  of  his  children  in 
Virginia,  he  returned  to  England  and  obtained  a 
grant  of  land  which  included  the  southern  part 
i53 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

of  Virginia  and  the  northern  part  of  North 
Carolina  ; but  through  the  efforts  of  people  in- 
terested in  Virginia,  this  grant  was  revoked  and 
he  was  given  a traft  north  of  the  Potomac,  which, 
however,  was  also  a part  of  Virginia. 

King  Charles  suggested  that  it  be  called 
Mariana  in  honor  of  the  queen.  But  Lord 
Baltimore,  with  charafteristic  shrewdness,  re- 
plied that  it  was  also  the  name  of  a Spanish 
Jesuit  who  had  written  against  monarchy,  and 
the  king  thereupon  proposed  Terra  Marias, 
which  was  adopted.  The  charter  was  written 
in  Latin,  and  is  the  only  one  of  the  colonial 
charters  the  original  of  which  is  in  that  language. 
But  before  Lord  Baltimore  could  receive  it  he 
died.  His  wife  and  several  of  his  children,  whom 
he  had  left  in  Virginia,  had  been  lost  at  sea  a 
few  months  before  in  returning  to  England. 

His  eldest  son,  Cecil  Calvert,  received  the 
charter,  which  was  confirmed  June  20,  1632. 
It  was  almost  precisely  the  same  as  the  charter 
which  had  been  granted  for  Avalon,  and  many 
of  its  provisions  were  followed  in  the  charter 
granted  fifty  years  afterwards  to  William  Penn 
for  Pennsylvania.  It  created  a great  feudal 
proprietorship,  and  introduced  on  the  American 
continent  the  feudal  system,  which  was  gradually 
disappearing  in  England. 

Lord  Baltimore  was  to  own  all  the  land  and 


!54 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

the  colonists  were  to  be  his  tenants,  paying  him 
a small  quit-rent  for  every  acre  they  held  of  him. 
He  was  to  be  the  ruler  and  governor  of  the 
province,  and  also  was  given  the  right  to  make 
laws  with  the  assent  of  the  freemen  or  their 
deputies. 

The  most  curious  part  of  the  charter  was  that 
it  allowed  Lord  Baltimore  to  levy  duties  on 
goods  imported  to  the  colony.  Such  an  extraor- 
dinary power  to  tax  the  produ&s  of  the  mother 
country  was  never  again  granted  in  any  charter, 
and  it  was  probably  given  in  Baltimore’s  charter 
only  because  there  had  been  little  or  no  expe- 
rience in  managing  colonies  up  to  that  time,  and 
the  government  was  disposed  to  encourage  them 
in  every  possible  way  by  privileges  and  favors, 
so  as  to  extend  the  empire  of  Great  Britain  and 
check  the  expansion  of  the  Dutch  at  New  York. 

Besides  this  favor  of  taxing  imports,  there 
was  another  clause  in  the  charter  by  which  the 
crown  bound  itself  never  to  tax  the  people  of 
the  colony  or  their  property.  The  usual  situ- 
ation of  affairs  was  reversed,  and,  so  far  as  tax- 
ation was  concerned,  Maryland  was  almost  in 
the  position  which  the  mother  country  occupied 
towards  the  other  colonies. 

But  it  made  very  little  difference  in  the  final 
result,  for  the  British  government  never  allowed 
Maryland  to  take  advantage  of  her  right  to  tax 
155 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

imports.  In  subsequent  charters  such  privileges 
were  not  given  ; and  in  the  Pennsylvania  charter, 
which  in  many  respedts  resembled  that  of  Mary- 
land, the  privilege  of  taxing  imports  was  omitted, 
and  a clause  inserted  which,  while  it  prohibited 
the  king  from  taxing  the  colonists,  gave  Parlia- 
ment full  authority  to  do  so. 

Cecil  Calvert  immediately  set  to  work  to 
carry  out  his  father’s  intention,  and  here  we 
meet  with  another  subjeft  of  much  controversy 
in  Maryland  history.  It  has  been  said  that  the 
colony  was  founded  on  the  principle  of  religious 
liberty,  and  was  the  first  colony  in  America 
where  that  liberty  was, established. 

But  the  religious  liberty  which  prevailed  in 
Maryland  under  the  Roman  Catholics  was 
forced  upon  them  by  circumstances  which  they 
could  not  avoid.  Neither  the  Church  of  Eng- 
land, the  Puritans,  nor  the  Catholics  believed  In 
religious  liberty  at  that  time.  Each  believed  in 
a state  church  established  by  law,  and  each  was 
intent  on  establishing  its  own  faith  by  force,  to 
the  exclusion  of  every  other. 

The  grandiloquent  phrases  in  which  the  first 
settlement  of  the  Maryland  Catholics  at  St. 
Mary’s  on  the  Potomac  is  described  as  the 
home  of  religious  liberty,  and  its  only  home  in 
the  wide  world,  can  deceive  only  the  ignorant. 
A few  years  before  the  Puritans  had  established 
156 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

a home  for  their  religious  liberty  at  Boston. 
Both  the  Puritan  and  the  Catholic  were  seeking 
what  was  called  at  that  time  freedom  to  worship 
God.  The  phrase  meant  precisely  the  same  in 
each  case,  and  each  hoped  to  be  let  alone,  with 
no  opinions  near  them  which  they  did  not 
accept. 

The  only  difference  between  the  Puritans  at 
Boston  and  the  Catholics  at  St.  Mary’s  was  that, 
the  majority  of  the  people  in  England  being 
Protestant,  the  Puritan  colonists  were  not  re- 
garded as  dangerous,  or  as  likely  to  be  in  league 
with  the  Pope  and  the  kings  of  France  and 
Spain  in  their  designs  against  Great  Britain ; 
and  they  were  accordingly  let  alone,  and  tacitly 
allowed  to  establish  their  religion  and  intoler- 
ance by  law.  But  the  Catholic  colonists  dared 
not  establish  their  religion  to  the  exclusion  of 
others.  It  was  a question  in  the  minds  of  most 
Englishmen  whether  these  people,  who  believed 
in  the  authority  of  a foreign  power  to  depose 
English  kings  and  foment  rebellion  against  them, 
and  who  were  continually  plotting  the  over- 
throw of  the  British  government,  should  be 
allowed  to  exist  at  all,  and  they  would  certainly 
never  have  been  allowed  to  establish  their 
peculiar  system  and  theories  as  the  exclusive 
system  of  a British  colony. 

In  Virginia  and  Massachusetts,  which  were 
!57 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

then  the  only  other  colonies  in  existence,  Cath- 
olics were  in  effedt  excluded ; and  during  the 
whole  of  the  colonial  period,  although  there 
were  a few  Catholics  scattered  about  in  all  the 
colonies,  they  were  barely  tolerated ; and  even 
when  their  presence  and  worship  were  allowed, 
it  was  generally  considered  unsafe  to  permit  them 
to  take  any  part  in  government.  Under  these 
circumstances  the  founding  of  a colony  which 
should  freely  receive  them  was  something  of  a 
feat,  and  it  is  probable  that  there  were  few,  if 
any,  people  in  England  who  could  have  accom- 
plished it  except  the  Baltimores,  with  their  in- 
herited influence  at  court  and  their  habitual 
shrewdness  and  moderation. 

Whether  their  opinions  were  in  reality  mod- 
erate, whether  they  accepted  the  extreme  views 
of  the  power  of  the  Pope  over  the  English  gov- 
ernment, or  whether  they  would  have  favored 
an  attempt  by  the  kings  of  France  and  Spain  to 
inflidt  Catholicism  on  England  by  force,  are 
interesting  questions  which  have  been  discussed 
at  times,  but  which  cannot  be  answered,  for  the 
Baltimores  expressed  no  opinions  and  made  no 
arguments.  They  could  not,  like  the  Puritans 
of  Massachusetts  or  William  Penn  and  his 
Quakers  in  Pennsylvania,  glory  in  their  enter- 
prise or  explain  it  at  large.  If  a colony  to 
which  Catholics  could  resort  was  to  be  estab- 
158 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

lished  at  all,  it  would  have  to  be  done  quietly 
and  unobtrusively,  and  in  that  case  the  least  said 
the  better. 

Cecil  Calvert  prepared  two  vessels,  the  Ark 
and  the  Dove,  and  bore  the  whole  expense 
of  the  expedition,  which  was  forty  thousand 
pounds.  He  collected  emigrants,  whose  num- 
bers have  been  variously  stated  at  two  hundred 
and  three  hundred;  but  it  would  seem  from 
Cecil  Calvert’s  own  account  that  there  were  a 
few  over  three  hundred. 

Under  the  rising  power  of  the  Puritans  the 
laws  against  the  Catholics  were  now  being  more 
rigidly  enforced  than  ever,  and  doubtless  there 
were  many  who  would  have  been  glad  to  go  but 
for  the  risk  they  ran  of  attracting  more  attention 
to  themselves  by  seeming  to  establish  a province 
of  their  own  faith,  which  would  at  once  be  sus- 
pended of  assisting  the  king  of  France  to  control 
the  British  throne.  But  a large  number  of  the 
emigrants  were  Protestants,  who  may  have  been 
purposely  obtained  so  as  to  avoid  the  charge  of 
founding  an  exclusively  Catholic  community. 
Indeed,  some  writers  have  asserted  that  it  is 
probable  that  the  majority  were  Protestants ; 
but  the  highest  estimate  that  can  be  relied  upon 
does  not  give  the  proportion  of  Protestants  at 
much  above  a third. 

Many  of  the  emigrants  were  persons  of  means 
159 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

or  position,  and  they  all  seem  to  have  been  a 
steadier  and  less  adventurous  class  than  the 
early  settlers  of  Virginia.  Cecil  described 
them  as  composed  of  two  of  his  brothers, 
“ with  very  near  twenty  other  gentlemen  of 
very  good  fashion,  and  three  hundred  laboring 
men  well  provided  in  all  things.” 

Only  by  the  high  favor  at  court  which  Cecil 
had  inherited  from  his  father  was  he  enabled  to 
take  these  people  out  of  the  country.  The 
Puritans  seriously  objected  to  the  establishment 
of  such  a colony  anywhere  in  the  British  pos- 
sessions, every  obstacle  that  could  be  devised 
was  placed  in  its  way,  and  Cecil  found  that  he 
needed  the  full  force  of  his  influence  at  every 
step. 

Charles  I.  and  the  officers  of  his  government 
no  doubt  felt  that  as  a few  years  before  they  had 
relieved  the  country  of  some  very  troublesome 
and  dangerous  people  by  letting  the  Puritans  go 
to  Massachusetts,  so  now  they  were  lessening 
their  difficulties  for  the  future  by  getting  rid  of 
a few  hundred  Catholics. 

Cecil  almost  slipped  his  people  away  without 
the  oath  of  allegiance.  In  faft,  he  had  got  them 
all  on  board  and  they  had  gone  to  sea  when 
Lord  Coke,  the  Secretary  of  State,  informed 
Admiral  Pennington,  who  went  in  pursuit  of  the 
Ark  and  the  Dove  and  brought  them  back.  This 
160 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

was  a serious  matter,  and  the  Jesuits  and  more 
than  half  the  company  immediately  deserted  the 
ships  and  went  to  the  Isle  of  Wight. 

When  the  “ London  Searcher”  arrived,  he 
found  only  one  hundred  and  twenty-eight  people 
to  whom  he  could  administer  the  oath.  This 
oath  had  been  rendered  necessary  by  the  Pope’s 
bull  freeing  all  English  subjefts  from  their 
allegiance  to  the  crown,  and  by  the  position 
of  hostility  which  the  Catholics  had  assumed 
towards  the  government.  It  was  an  oath  which 
was  extremely  difficult  for  a Catholic  to  take. 
He  was  obliged  to  swear  that  the  king  was  law- 
fully a king,  that  the  Pope  had  no  power  to 
depose  him  or  to  license  his  subjefts  to  rebel 
against  or  assassinate  him,  that  he  would  bear 
true  allegiance  to  the  king,  that  the  Pope  could 
not  absolve  him  from  this  oath,  and  that  the 
oath  meant  exaftly  what  it  said,  and  was  taken 
without  any  mental  or  secret  reservation  what- 
soever. 

To  allow  Catholics  to  depart  for  the  pur- 
pose of  founding  a colony  in  America  without 
the  sanction  of  this  oath  was  considered  utterly 
out  of  the  question,  and  even  the  king  had  no 
power  to  help  Cecil  out  of  this  predicament. 

But  Cecil’s  people  seem  to  have  been  well 
able  to  take  care  of  themselves.  The  one 
hundred  and  twenty-eight  who  took  the  oath 
Vol.  II—  ii  161 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

were  presumably  the  Protestants  of  the  expe- 
dition, who  had  no  objection  to  it,  and  perhaps 
some  of  them  were  Catholics  who  managed  to 
settle  such  matters  with  their  consciences  in  a 
way  of  their  own.  It  is  most  likely,  however, 
that  these  one  hundred  and  twenty-eight  were  all 
Protestants,  and  show  the  exaft  number  of  that 
faith  among  the  emigrants. 

When  the  searcher  asked  the  captain  if  there 
were  any  more,  he  was  informed  that  “ some 
few  others  were  shipped  who  had  forsaken  the 
ship  and  given  over  the  voyage.”  The  one 
hundred  and  seventy  people  or  thereabouts 
whom  the  captain  described  as  “ some  few 
others”  were  all  waiting  at  the  Isle  of  Wight, 
and  were  picked  up  there  when  the  Ark  and 
the  Dove  were  finally  allowed  to  proceed  ; so 
that  the  principal  part,  if  not  all,  of  the  Catholics 
of  the  expedition  got  away  without  taking  the 
oath  at  all. 

It  was  the  22d  of  November,  1632,  when 
those  who  had  dodged  the  oath  were  taken  on 
board,  and  all  started  on  the  long  voyage  of 
those  times  down  to  the  Azores  and  Canary 
Islands,  across  to  the  West  Indies,  and  then  up 
the  coast  to  Chesapeake  Bay.  They  spent  the 
winter  in  the  West  Indies,  and  reached  Point 
Comfort  in  Virginia  on  the  27th  of  February. 
They  had  some  apprehension  of  serious  inter- 
162 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

ference  from  the  Virginians ; but  the  letters  of 
safe-condu£t  given  by  the  king  protefted  them, 
and,  proceeding  up  the  Chesapeake,  they  es- 
tablished themselves  on  the  north  bank  of  the 
Potomac,  at  a place  they  named  St.  Mary’s. 

Cecil  Calvert  had  remained  in  England,  and 
sent  out  with  the  colonists  his  brother  Leonard 
as  their  governor,  who  experienced  none  of 
the  difficulties  and  hardships  which  had  be- 
fallen the  Virginia  settlers  at  Jamestown.  St. 
Mary’s  was  a more  wholesome  spot,  and  the 
waters  swarmed  with  wild  fowl,  fish,  and  oysters. 

Some  islands  in  the  river  near  St.  Mary’s 
they  called  the  Heron  Isles,  from  the  immense 
flocks  of  that  species  of  bird  which  were  found 
upon  them.  One  of  the  earliest  accounts  of  the 
colony  describes  the  “ eagles,  bitterns,  herons, 
swannes,  geese,  partridge,  ducks,  red  bleu 
parti-colored  birds  and  the  like”  which  ap- 
peared everywhere  in  countless  numbers.  As 
for  fish,  they  were  in  even  greater  abundance  : 
bass,  blue-fish,  rock,  shad,  perch,  and  sturgeon 
mingled  with  the  pompano  and  bonito  of  the 
South.  Prodigious  quantities  could  be  taken 
with  very  little  trouble.  As  late  as  1763  the 
Maryland  Gazette  recorded  that  one  haul  of  a 
seine  at  Kent  Island  brought  in  one  hundred 
and  seventy-three  bushels,  which  were  sold  at 
two  shillings  sixpence  a bushel. 

163 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

They  seem  to  have  planted  fruit-trees  imme- 
diately, which  flourished  beyond  all  expe&ation. 
Within  twenty-two  years  the  orchards  were  a 
conspicuous  feature  about  St.  Mary’s.  Peach-, 
quince-,  apple-,  plum-,  chestnut-,  and  walnut- 
trees,  as  well  as  grape-vines,  grew  luxuriantly, 
and  are  described  by  travellers  in  language  so 
enthusiastic  that  we  might  doubt  its  truth  if 
it  were  not  confirmed  from  so  many  sources. 
In  colonial  times,  in  Maryland,  Pennsylvania, 
and  New  York,  there  seems  to  have  been  some 
influence  peculiarly  favorable  to  the  growth  of 
fruit-trees,  which  were  not  so  short-lived  or  so 
barren  and  diseased  as  they  have  since  become. 

Both  Leonard  Calvert  and  the  Jesuits  were 
very  judicious  in  their  dealings  with  the  Indians. 
The  colonists,  though  few  in  numbers,  were 
for  a long  time  left  undisturbed.  But  as  they 
increased  and  began  to  spread  out  the  jealousy 
of  the  red  man  was  aroused,  in  spite  of  all  the 
efforts  of  the  Jesuits.  Murdering  and  fighting 
began,  and  growth  and  prosperity  were  checked 
for  many  years,  as  in  Virginia  and  Carolina. 

For  the  first  ten  years  of  its  existence  the 
colony  prospered  fully  as  well  as  could  be  ex- 
pefted,  increasing  slowly  but  steadily  in  popu- 
lation, until  after  twenty  years  the  people  are 
supposed  to  have  numbered  about  eight  thou- 
sand, gathered  round  the  original  settlement  of 
164 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

St.  Mary’s,  in  the  extreme  southern  part  of  the 
province,  and  slowly  and  cautiously  spreading 
out  from  it.  They  had  small  clearings,  where, 
like  the  Virginians,  they  immediately  began  the 
cultivation  of  tobacco,  which  became  the  money 
of  the  province,  and  they  kept  close  to  the  water, 
having  few  roads,  and  depending  for  their  trans- 
portation on  boats. 

The  policy  of  having  Protestants  in  the  col- 
ony was  carefully  continued  by  the  Baltimores. 
In  his  first  advertisement  for  settlers,  Cecil  Cal- 
vert had  announced  that  he  would  accept  people 
of  all  religious  faiths,  and  he  issued  a proclama- 
tion forbidding  “ all  unreasonable  disputations 
on  points  of  religion  tending  to  the  disturbance 
of  the  public  peace  and  quiet  and  to  the  open- 
ing of  faftion  in  religion.” 

This  order  seems  to  have  been  enforced  in  at 
least  one  instance.  Two  Protestant  servants 
were  reading  aloud,  when  a Catholic,  William 
Lewis,  entering  the  room,  heard  some  such  ex- 
pressions as  that  “ the  Pope  was  antichrist  and 
the  Jesuits  antichristian  ministers,”  whereupon 
he  exclaimed  that  it  was  a falsehood  and  came 
from  the  devil,  as  all  lies  did,  and  that  all  Prot- 
estant ministers  were  the  ministers  of  the  devil, 
and  he  forbade  them  reading  the  book.  The 
servants,  in  a state  of  great  irritation,  are  said 
to  have  prepared  a petition  to  the  governor  of 

165 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

Virginia,  which  was  to  be  signed  by  all  the 
Protestants  in  the  colony;  but  before  they  could 
accomplish  anything  the  matter  was  brought 
before  the  governor  and  his  court,  and  Lewis 
was  reprimanded  and  fined  five  hundred  pounds 
of  tobacco  for  his  “offensive  speeches”  and 
“ disputations.” 

Calvert  dared  not  aft  otherwise  than  very 
liberally  towards  the  Protestants.  The  slightest 
attempt  to  make  Catholicism  exclusive,  or  the 
slightest  infringement  of  Protestant  privileges, 
would  have  lost  him  his  province.  He  could 
build  up  his  province  only  by  avoiding  all  offence 
to  Protestants  both  in  England  and  in  his  colony. 
The  stock  story  which  has  just  been  given  of  the 
punishment  of  a Catholic  for  offensive  speech  to 
a Protestant  shows  the  constant  danger  he  was  in  ; 
for  the  Protestants  in  that  instance  threatened  at 
once  to  appeal  to  Virginia,  and  nothing  would 
have  pleased  the  Virginians  more  than  to  have 
received  such  an  appeal,  which  they  could  have 
made  use  of  with  much  effeft. 

Although  the  government  of  Virginia  was 
obliged  by  the  letters  of  the  king  to  offer  no 
opposition  to  Lord  Baltimore,  the  Virginians 
were  eager  to  resent  the  occupation  by  Cath- 
olics of  a territory  which  had  been  carved  out 
of  their  own  province  and  on  which  some  of 
their  people  had  already  settled. 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

One  of  the  Virginians  who  had  settled  within 
the  limits  of  Maryland  before  the  date  of  Lord 
Baltimore’s  charter  was  William  Clayborne,  who 
had  a trading  station  of  some  importance  on 
Kent  Island  and  another  on  Palmer’s  Island,  near 
the  mouth  of  the  Susquehanna.  He  refused  to 
submit  himself  to  the  jurisdiftion  of  Lord  Balti- 
more, and,  assisted  by  Protestants  in  both  Vir- 
ginia and  Maryland,  carried  on  a petty  warfare 
of  annoyance  until  Leonard  Calvert  sent  two 
armed  sloops,  which,  meeting  Clayborne’s  ves- 
sels in  the  Pocoinoke  River  on  the  23d  of  April, 
1635,  fought  what  has  been  called  the  first  naval 
battle  of  America. 

Clayborne  was  defeated,  his  island  seized, 
his  property  confiscated,  and  Cecil  Calvert’s  in- 
fluence with  the  king  prevented  the  Virginia 
government  from  taking  sides  with  its  unruly 
citizen.  But  the  Virginians,  especially  the  Puri- 
tans among  them,  sympathized  with  Clayborne, 
and  before  long  they  all  had  an  opportunity  for 
revenge. 

Charles  I.  was  now  having  serious  difficulties 
with  the  Puritans.  They  were  in  open  rebel- 
lion, and  Cromwell  was  becoming  their  greatest 
leader.  After  the  battle  of  Marston  Moor,  in 
1644,  the  Puritans  in  England  were  in  the  as- 
cendant and  those  in  the  colonies  correspond- 
ingly elated.  Many  of  the  Virginia  Puritans 
167 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

joined  those  already  in  Maryland,  and,  assisted 
by  these,  Clayborne  attacked  Kent  Island,  and, 
after  taking  it,  went  over  to  the  west  side  of  the 
bay  and  captured  the  settlement  at  St.  Mary’s. 

Leonard  Calvert  fled  to  Virginia,  and  for  two 
years  Clayborne  and  the  Puritans  were  masters 
of  the  province  that  had  been  founded  for  Cath- 
olics. The  Jesuits  were  seized  and  sent  in 
chains  to  England,  many  of  the  Catholics  driven 
into  banishment,  and  those  who  remained  fined 
and  stripped  of  their  property.  Thus,  after  a 
comparatively  peaceful  existence  of  ten  years. 
Lord  Baltimore’s  colony,  so  far  as  it  was  a Cath- 
olic community,  was  wiped  out  of  existence. 

In  his  retirement  in  Virginia,  Leonard  Cal- 
vert soon  found  that  the  royalists  of  the  colony 
were  willing  to  assist  him.  They  had  no 
interest  in  him  as  a Catholic,  but  they  were 
trying  to  hold  Virginia  against  Cromwell  and 
the  English  Puritans,  and  they  were  willing  that 
Calvert  should  defeat  the  Puritans  in  Maryland. 
Hill,  who  was  afting  as  Puritan  governor  of 
Maryland,  was  unable  to  keep  order,  and  within 
two  years  many  of  the  people  under  him  were 
very  willing  to  have  the  Catholic  proprietors 
restored. 

Governor  Berkeley,  of  Virginia,  furnished 
Calvert  with  a small  force,  with  which,  in 
August,  1646,  he  repossessed  himself  of  his 
168 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

former  authority  at  St.  Mary’s  without  striking 
a blow.  But  Kent  Island,  Clayborne’s  strong- 
hold, held  out  until  subdued  in  the  following 
spring,  and  soon  after,  in  June,  1647,  Leonard 
Calvert  died. 

Cecil  Calvert  had  now  to  solve  the  difficult 
problem  of  retaining  possession  of  his  Catholic 
colony  with  Cromwell  and  the  Puritans  in  power 
in  England,  and  he  went  about  the  task  in  the  only 
way  that  was  possible.  He  appointed  as  gover- 
nor, in  1648,  William  Stone,  a Virginia  Protes- 
tant, and  bound  him  by  a long  oath,  in  which, 
among  other  things,  he  swore  that  he  would  not 
direftly  or  indireftly  molest  for  their  religion  any 
one  professing  to  believe  in  Jesus  Christ,  “and 
in  particular  no  Roman  Catholic.” 

Having  thus  protected  the  Roman  Catholics 
from  the  Protestant  governor,  he  proceeded  to 
proteft  the  Protestants  from  the  Roman  Catholic 
legislature,  and  under  his  direftions  the  assembly 
of  the  year  1649  passed  the  law  which  has  be- 
come known  as  the  Maryland  Toleration  Aft. 
It  provided,  under  penalty  of  fines,  imprison- 
ment, and  whipping,  that  no  one  professing  to 
believe  in  Jesus  Christ  should  be  molested  in 
his  religion  ; that  no  one  should  blaspheme 
God,  deny  the  divinity  of  Christ  or  the  doftrine 
of  the  Trinity,  or  speak  reproachfully  of  the 
apostles  or  the  Virgin  Mary  ; and  that  no  one  in 
169 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

a reproachful  way  should  call  any  one  a heretic, 
schismatic,  idolater,  Puritan,  Presbyterian,  Inde- 
pendent, Popish  priest,  Jesuit,  Jesuited  papist, 
Lutheran,  Calvinist,  Anabaptist,  Brownist,  Anti- 
nomian,  Barrowist,  Roundhead,  Separatist,  or  use 
any  other  name  relating  to  religion  in  a disre- 
speftful  manner. 

Clayborne  and  the  Puritans  were  still  at  work 
as  aftive  enemies,  and,  being  unable  to  attack 
and  capture  the  colony,  they  spread  rumors  that 
the  Protestants  of  Maryland  were  persecuted. 
To  offset  this,  the  “ Protestant  Declaration,”  as 
it  was  called,  was  obtained  in  1650.  It  was  a 
document  signed  by  the  governor,  the  Protestant 
members  of  the  assembly,  and  many  other  lead- 
ing Protestants  of  the  province,  declaring  that 
under  the  Toleration  Aft  they  were  enjoying  full 
freedom  in  the  exercise  of  their  religion. 

There  were  now  many  Puritans  in  Mary- 
land who  had  been  driven  from  Virginia  by  the 
severe  measures  of  the  Church  of  England  royal- 
ists against  them.  They  did  not  settle  among  the 
Catholics  at  St.  Mary’s,  but  went  north  of  them 
and  took  possession  of  the  country  on  the  Severn 
River  where  Annapolis  now  stands;  so  that  the 
colony  was  divided  into  a Catholic  and  a Puritan 
seftion.  The  Puritans,  although  living  very 
much  to  themselves,  were  restive  and  uneasy  at 
the  thought  that  they  were  under  a government 
170 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

in  the  control  of  Catholics,  and  they  particularly 
objected  to  the  oath  of  fidelity  to  Lord  Baltimore, 
which  they  were  compelled  to  take  in  words 
which  described  him  as  an  absolute  lord  of  royal 
jurisdiction.  Cecil  Calvert,  with  his  usual  mod- 
eration and  taft,  softened  the  oath  to  suit  their 
scruples. 

But  in  avoiding  danger  to  his  province  from 
the  Puritans,  he  found  that  he  had  unexpectedly 
offended  another  influence.  Charles  II.  was 
then  an  exile  in  Holland,  without  so  much  as  the 
shadow  of  power  in  the  British  dominions  ; but, 
offended  at  the  leniency  which  his  professed 
friend,  Cecil  Calvert,  had  shown  to  the  Maryland 
Puritans,  he  deposed  him  from  his  proprietor- 
ship because  he  “ did  visibly  adhere  to  the 
rebels  in  England,”  and  appointed  in  his  stead 
Sir  William  Davenant,  who  sailed  for  the  prov- 
ince with  a colony  of  Frenchmen. 

If  Davenant  had  reached  the  Chesapeake  he 
might  have  involved  Lord  Baltimore  in  very 
serious  difficulties  with  Cromwell,  who  would 
in  all  probability  have  made  short  work  of  the 
Catholic  colony,  which  thus  far  had  been  al- 
lowed to  exist  by  sufferance  ; but,  fortunately, 
Davenant  and  his  Frenchmen  were  captured  in 
the  English  Channel  by  a Parliamentary  cruiser. 

By  good  luck  Cecil  Calvert  had  escaped  this 
danger,  which  might  have  proved  his  ruin  ; but 
171 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

he  was  soon  involved  in  another,  in  which  there 
was  but  little  chance  for  a happy  accident  in  his 
favor. 

Cromwell  and  the  Parliament  had  settled 
their  affairs  in  England,  and  in  1650  were 
ready  to  take  up  the  subjeft  of  the  colonies, 
and  wherever  it  was  necessary  reduce  them  to 
submission.  The  New  England  people  were 
all  Puritans,  and  required  no  attention.  The 
only  other  colonies  on  the  continent  at  that  time 
were  Virginia  and  Maryland.  Of  these,  Vir- 
ginia had  been  as  openly  and  palpably  royalist 
as  New  England  had  been  Puritan,  and  no  one 
questioned  that  a fleet  should  be  sent  to  subdue 
her.  But  about  Maryland  there  was  some  doubt, 
and  in  the  aft  of  Parliament  which  was  passed 
to  authorize  the  sending  of  ships  to  the  disaf- 
fefted  colonies  in  the  West  Indies  and  on  the 
American  continent,  Maryland  was  not  named. 

Immediately,  however,  a clamor  was  raised 
that  Maryland  should  be  included.  Many  peo- 
ple had  always  been  of  the  opinion  that  it  was 
a mistake  to  allow  the  establishment  of  a Cath- 
olic colony,  and  they  seconded  the  efforts  of  the 
Puritans  who  had  been  followers  of  Clayborne. 
So  strong  was  the  agitation  that  some  of  the 
Protestants  in  Maryland,  fully  believing  that 
Lord  Baltimore  would  lose  his  charter,  refused 
to  eleft  members  to  the  assembly. 

172 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

The  question  whether  Maryland  should  be 
included  in  the  expedition  to  reduce  the  Bar- 
badoes  and  Virginia  was  debated  at  times  for 
many  months  in  the  Council  of  State,  and  Cecil 
Calvert’s  arguments  before  that  body  show  very 
clearly  the  careful  policy  by  which  he  had  pre- 
served Maryland  for  twenty  years. 

The  governor  of  his  colony,  he  said,  was 
already  a Protestant  in  religion  and  a Round- 
head  in  politics.  He  read  the  Declaration 
signed  by  the  leading  Protestants  of  the  prov- 
ince asserting  that  their  religious  liberty  was  un- 
disturbed ; he  exhibited  and  explained  the  Tol- 
eration Aft  which  had  been  recently  passed, 
and  by  the  testimony  of  several  merchants  and 
traders  he  proved  that  Maryland  had  received 
and  protefted  the  Puritans  who  had  been  driven 
from  Virginia. 

He  made,  indeed,  a very  strong  argument,  and 
the  only  weak  point  was  that  after  the  execution 
of  Charles  I.,  while  Governor  Stone  had  been 
absent  in  Virginia,  Thomas  Greene,  who  was 
afling  as  governor,  had  foolishly  issued  a procla- 
mation declaring  Charles  II.  the  rightful  heir  to 
the  throne.  But,  to  atone  for  this,  Cecil  showed 
that  Governor  Stone  had  immediately  on  his  re- 
turn disowned  and  recalled  this  proclamation. 

The  name  of  Maryland  was  finally  omitted 
from  the  instructions,  although  twice  inserted. 

173 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

But,  unfortunately,  Lord  Baltimore’s  enemies  had 
procured  the  insertion  of  the  general  words,  “ to 
reduce  all  the  plantations  within  the  Chesapeake 
Bay  to  their  due  obedience,”  and  one  of  the 
commissioners  appointed  to  go  with  the  two 
ships  which  composed  the  expedition  was  the 
troublesome  William  Clayborne. 

On  the  voyage  out  one  of  the  vessels  was 
lost,  but  the  other  proceeded  and,  after  reducing 
the  Barbadoes  to  submission,  reached  Virginia, 
where  the  people,  under  the  lead  of  Governor 
Berkeley,  by  a sufficient  show  of  force  and  prep- 
arations for  resistance  obtained  the  very  liberal 
terms  which  have  already  been  described. 
Clayborne  then,  in  March,  1652,  went  with  the 
ship  to  St.  Mary’s,  in  Maryland,  where,  under 
the  clause  which  empowered  him  to  reduce  all 
the  colonies  in  Chesapeake  Bay,  he  declared 
that  no  matter  what  the  good  conduct  of  the 
colony  had  been  in  the  past,  it  must  now  ex- 
pressly admit  its  submission  to  the  authority  of 
Parliament. 

Governor  Stone  hesitated  about  yielding  to 
this  demand,  which  gave  Clayborne  the  oppor- 
tunity and  excuse  he  wanted.  He  at  once 
deposed  Stone,  declared  all  afts  of  the  proprietor 
void,  and  appointed  six  commissioners  to  govern 
the  province.  He  went  back  to  Virginia,  and 
after  being  appointed  secretary  of  state  in  that 
174 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

colony,  he  returned  to  Maryland,  where  he 
appointed  Stone  governor,  to  rule  with  the  six 
commissioners  until  the  fate  of  the  province 
should  be  finally  settled  by  the  Parliament  in 
England. 

The  conflict  was  now  transferred  to  England, 
where  Lord  Baltimore  and  the  agent  of  the 
commissioners  argued  their  respeftive  positions 
before  Parliament.  The  petition  of  the  agent 
of  the  commissioners  was  dismissed  ; but  Parlia- 
ment being  soon  after  dissolved  by  Cromwell, 
and  the  Dutch  war  coming  on,  the  subject  was 
dropped,  and  Lord  Baltimore  took  advantage  of 
the  situation  to  re-establish  his  authority  in 
Maryland,  which  he  accomplished  in  1654. 

As  soon  as  Clayborne  and  his  fellow-com- 
missioners heard  of  this,  they  determined  on 
another  invasion  which  would  completely  extir- 
pate the  Catholics  of  Maryland.  Proceeding 
quietly  at  first,  they  demanded  submission  from 
Governor  Stone,  which  he  at  first  refused.  But 
the  Catholics  besought  him  to  yield,  for  the 
Protestants  were  rapidly  joining  themselves  to 
Clayborne,  and  if  the  Catholics  resisted  by 
force,  it  would  be  remembered  against  them  in 
the  future.  This  was  in  the  line  of  policy 
which  they  and  Lord  Baltimore  had  always 
followed.  They  must  have  a reputation  of 
assisting  and  protefting  Protestants ; for  the 
i75 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

moment  that  they  became  known  as  fighting  and 
resisting,  they  would  have  the  whole  English 
nation  against  them. 

So  Maryland  passed  again  into  the  possession 
of  Clayborne.  An  assembly  was  summoned 
for  the  following  Oftober,  and  no  one  who  had 
borne  arms  against  the  Parliament  or  was  a 
Roman  Catholic  could  become  a member  or 
vote  in  the  ele&ion.  When  the  assembly 
chosen  in  this  way  met,  an  aft  was  passed  pro- 
tefting  Protestants  of  all  opinions,  but  expressly 
refusing  proteftion  to  Catholics,  and  forbidding 
any  one  to  take  the  oath  of  fidelity  to  Lord 
Baltimore. 

Cromwell  was  now  well  established  as  Lord 
Proteftor  of  England,  and  it  became  his  interest, 
as  it  had  been  the  interest  of  Charles  I.  and 
James  I.,  who  had  preceded  him,  to  preserve  a 
balance  among  the  various  warring  faftions,  and 
secure  the  support  even  of  Catholics.  Cecil 
Calvert  had  submitted  to  his  authority,  and  his 
appeals  to  him  were  not  in  vain.  Clayborne  and 
the  other  commissioners  received  a letter  from 
Cromwell,  ordering  them  to  refrain  from  dis- 
turbing Lord  Baltimore  in  the  possession  of  his 
province  until  his  dispute  with  Virginia  about 
boundaries  could  be  settled  in  England.  At 
the  same  time  Calvert  sent  a messenger  to  Stone, 
upbraiding  him  for  submitting  so  tamely,  and 
176 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

ordering  him  immediately  to  restore  the  author- 
ity of  the  proprietor. 

Stone  could  do  nothing  in  the  northern  part 
of  the  province  on  the  Severn,  where  the  Puri- 
tans were  in  almost  complete  possession  ; but  he 
organized  a force  of  about  one  hundred  and 
thirty  men  among  the  Catholics  of  St,  Mary’s, 
and  immediately  captured  a magazine  of  arms 
and  the  records  of  the  colony,  which  were  in 
the  possession  of  some  of  the  Puritans  on  the 
Patuxent.  On  the  20th  of  March,  1655,  he  set 
out  northward  against  his  enemy’s  stronghold  at 
Providence.  Part  of  his  force  marched  by  land, 
and  the  rest  proceeded  in  boats  along  the  shore. 

The  Puritans  sent  him  some  messages  pro- 
fessing a willingness  to  submit  under  the  con- 
dition of  having  the  liberty  of  English  subjects; 
but  Stone  paid  no  attention  to  them,  and  kept 
as  prisoners  the  messengers,  who  had  no  doubt 
been  sent  merely  to  delay  him  or  discover  the 
disposition  of  his  force. 

He  entered  the  harbor  of  Providence,  now 
Annapolis,  late  in  the  evening,  where  he  found 
that  the  Puritans  had  secured  the  assistance  of 
a merchant  vessel,  the  Golden  Lyon,  which 
opened  fire  on  him.  The  captain  of  the  Golden 
Lyon,  Roger  Heamans,  was  an  ardent  Puritan, 
and  has  left  us  an  account  of  the  battle.  Stone 
turned  aside  to  avoid  the  fire  from  the  ship, 

VOL.  II. — 12  177 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

landed  in  a creek,  and  went  ashore  for  the  night. 
The  next  morning  he  moved  down  openly  upon 
the  enemy,  who  appear  to  have  been  gathered  at 
the  water-side  and  on  board  the  Golden  Lyon. 

When  the  Puritans  saw  him  coming  under 
the  black  and  yellow  flag  of  Lord  Baltimore, 
they  sent  Captain  Fuller  with  one  hundred  and 
seventy  men  to  make  a circuit  and  get  behind 
him ; but  Stone  seems  to  have  turned  and  faced 
this  force,  and  it  was  with  them  that  the  battle 
was  fought. 

Fuller  set  up  the  standard  of  the  Common- 
wealth, and  quietly  waited  till  the  Catholics 
fired  upon  it.  Then,  with  the  Puritan  war- 
cry  that  had  recently  resounded  over  so  many 
fields  of  England,  “ In  the  name  of  God,  fall 
on  !”  they  rushed  to  the  charge.  The  Catho- 
lics shouted,  “ Hey  for  St.  Mary’s !”  but  the 
Cromwellian  onset  swept  them  from  the  field. 
The  whole  of  Stone’s  force  was  killed  or  cap- 
tured, except  about  five,  who  made  their  escape. 
“ God,”  says  one  of  the  Puritan  chroniclers, 
“ did  appear  wonderful  in  the  field  and  in  the 
hearts  of  the  people and  Captain  Heamans 
relates  with  true  Puritan  unftion  how  they  took 
among  the  spoil  “ their  Pictures,  Crucifixes 
and  rows  of  Beads,  with  great  store  of  Reliques 
and  trash  they  trusted  in.” 

Stone  was  wounded,  and  ten  of  his  prominent 
178 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

followers  among  the  prisoners  were  immediately 
condemned  to  death,  bat  only  four  were  exe- 
cuted. A general  confiscation  of  property  fol- 
lowed, and  the  commissioners  urged  on  the 
home  government  that  not  only  should  Lord 
Baltimore  be  deprived  of  his  province,  but  the 
province  should  be  restored  as  a part  of  Vir- 
ginia, from  which  it  had  been  unlawfully  sepa- 
rated by  the  charter  granted  by  Charles  I. 

Cromwell  was  uninfluenced  by  any  of  these 
requests.  He  regarded  Lord  Baltimore  as  a 
man  who  had  submitted  himself  to  the  new 
order  of  things  in  England,  who  by  his  own 
efforts  and  largely  at  his  own  expense  was 
adding  a colony  to  the  British  empire,  and  he 
cared  nothing  for  his  Catholic  opinions,  which, 
in  his  case  at  least,  were  moderate  and  harmless. 
The  Committee  of  Trade  and  Plantations  took 
the  whole  question  into  consideration,  and 
meanwhile  the  Puritans  ruled  Maryland  for  a 
year,  and  imprisoned  the  new  governor  whom 
Lord  Baltimore  appointed.  The  decision  of 
the  committee  was  wholly  in  favor  of  Lord  Bal- 
timore, and  by  their  report  of  September  16, 
1656,  his  authority  was  restored. 

But  he  could  obtain  possession  only  of  St. 
Mary’s.  The  Puritans  still  held  the  Severn 
and  the  northern  country.  They  had  in  their 
possession  the  records  and  great  seal  of  the 
179 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

province,  and  they  elefted  an  assembly  and  car- 
ried on  the  government  as  if  their  authority 
was  undisputed.  This  state  of  affairs  continued 
for  another  year,  when  an  agreement  was  signed 
by  Lord  Baltimore  and  Samuel  Matthews,  one 
of  the  leaders  of  the  Puritans,  which  reads  like 
a treaty  between  two  independent  nations,  and, 
indeed,  describes  itself  as  a treaty. 

After  six  years’  contest  with  the  Puritans, 
during  which  time  Lord  Baltimore  had  been 
alternately  in  and  out  of  power  in  his  province 
and  never  in  full  possession,  he  was  now  fully 
restored.  By  gifts  of  land  and  other  favors  he 
amply  rewarded  those  who  had  stood  by  him, 
and  provided  for  the  support  of  the  widows  and 
children  of  those  who  had  fallen  in  his  cause. 

There  was  another  rebellion  in  1660  when 
Charles  II.  was  restored  to  the  throne ; but 
it  was  soon  suppressed  by  Lord  Baltimore’s 
brother,  Philip  Calvert,  who  was  sent  out  to  be 
governor.  The  next  fifteen  years,  until  1675, 
passed  in  prosperous  tranquillity.  Philip  Cal- 
vert was  succeeded  in  1661  by  his  nephew, 
Charles  Calvert,  eldest  son  of  Lord  Baltimore. 
In  those  fifteen  years  the  population  is  supposed 
to  have  increased  from  eight  thousand  to  twenty 
thousand,  most  of  it  composed  of  Presbyterians, 
Independents,  Baptists,  Quakers,  and  a few  mem- 
bers of  the  Church  of  England.  The  Catholics 
180 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

were  only  about  a fourth  of  all  the  people,  and 
some  estimates  make  their  numbers  even  smaller. 

As  a refuge  for  the  Catholics,  and  as  a Cath- 
olic colony,  Maryland  was  not  a success.  It 
offered  no  advantages  to  people  of  that  faith, 
and  many  of  those  who  had  settled  in  it  were 
inclined  to  go  away.  In  faft,  when  we  con- 
sider all  the  contests  and  the  confiscations  of 
Catholic  property,  it  is  rather  surprising  that  any 
of  them  were  willing  to  remain. 

Lord  Baltimore  had  done  his  best ; but,  under 
the  rising  power  of  Cromwell  and  the  Puritans, 
to  have  filled  Maryland  with  Catholics  would 
have  been  to  invite  destruftion,  and  he  was 
compelled  to  let  his  colony  become  merely  a 
source  of  profit  and  distinftion  for  himself.  In- 
stead of  an  asylum  for  the  persecuted  of  his  own 
faith,  he  was  obliged  to  encourage  Puritan  ref- 
ugees from  the  royalist  colony  of  Virginia,  and 
make  his  province  an  asylum  for  the  people 
who  were  the  enemies  of  his  faith.  He  played 
the  rather  peculiar  part  of  a Roman  Catholic 
proteftor  of  Puritans. 

We  know  little  of  his  personality  or  opinions. 
He  left  no  writings,  and  made  no  arguments  or 
appeals  that  have  come  down  to  us.  His  color- 
lessness in  this  respeft  is  in  strange  contrast  to 
that  other  great  proprietor  of  colonial  times, 
William  Penn,  who  founded  Pennsylvania. 

1S1 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

There  were  a number  of  these  feudal  pro- 
prietors who  were  given  vast  trafts  of  land  in 
America,  from  which  they  all  expefted  wealth 
and  power.  Besides  those  of  Carolina,  there 
were  the  proprietors  of  New  Jersey,  of  New 
Hampshire,  and  of  Maine.  But,  with  the  ex- 
ception of  William  Penn  and  Cecil  Calvert,  they 
were  all  wretched  failures. 

Penn  was  an  impulsive,  enthusiastic  man, 
devoted  to  philanthropy,  liberty,  and  all  the 
progressive  movements  of  his  day,  who  com- 
mitted himself  on  every  occasion,  who  told  the 
world  all  that  he  thought  and  felt,  who  argued 
openly  on  all  the  great  political  and  religious 
questions  of  his  time,  and  whose  letters,  essays, 
and  pamphlets  have  come  down  to  us  in  several 
volumes.  Of  Calvert’s  opinions  we  scarcely 
know  a single  one  with  certainty  ; and  while  he 
was  evidently  a man  of  determined  purpose, 
there  is  no  evidence  that  he  was  an  enthusiast  on 
any  subject. 

In  establishing  a refuge  for  the  people  of  his 
faith,  Penn  succeeded  and  Calvert  failed.  But 
Penn  had  little  or  no  shrewdness  in  business 
affairs.  His  children  grew  very  rich  from  Penn- 
sylvania, but  he  himself  lost  money  by  the  prov- 
ince, was  cheated  by  the  manager  of  his  estates 
in  England,  and  was  at  one  time  imprisoned  for 
debt.  He  had  no  skill  in  judging  charafter, 
182 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

and  made  most  unfortunate  mistakes  in  choosing 
his  agents  and  governors.  But  Calvert  was  an 
incarnation  of  discretion,  ta£l,  and  adroitness, 
with  a natural  instinft  for  governing  which 
compelled  the  admiration  and  respedt  even  of 
those  who  opposed  him.  The  assembly  of  his 
province  constantly  voted  him  supplies  and 
levied  taxes  for  his  benefit,  which,  in  spite  of  all 
the  turmoil  and  the  money  he  had  expended,  en- 
abled him  to  live  through  those  trying  years 
without  bankruptcy. 

There  was  a general  resemblance  in  Mary- 
land life  to  the  life  of  Virginia,  and  yet  with 
differences  which  show  the  gradual  change  in 
climate,  soil,  and  topography  of  a more  north- 
ern latitude.  Maryland  was  close  to  the  dividing 
line  between  South  and  North,  and,  while  she 
was  decidedly  Southern,  her  civilization  had  a 
touch  of  the  North. 

The  Marylanders  occupied  both  sides  of  the 
upper  half  of  the  Chesapeake,  in  the  same  way 
that  the  Virginians  occupied  the  lower  half, 
taking  advantage  of  the  large  rivers  and  estuaries 
that  poured  into  the  bay.  Their  first  settle- 
ments clung  to  the  shores  of  these  rivers,  and 
they  penetrated  backward  into  the  interior  very 
slowly.  They  travelled  from  place  to  place 
and  exchanged  their  products  usually  in  boats, 
and  gradually  developed  for  that  purpose  types 

183 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

of  sailing  vessels,  small,  fast,  and  convenient, 
which  now  survive  in  the  buckeye  and  sailing 
canoe  which  are  still  seen  in  their  waters. 

The  plantations  were  at  first  all  on  the  river- 
shores,  and  each  planter  had  his  own  wharf, 
where  the  ships  from  England  came  for  his 
tobacco,  and  delivered  to  him  the  tools  and 
manufaftured  goods  he  required,  as  in  Virginia, 
without  the  aid  of  towns  and  local  merchants. 
As  plantations  were  established  in  the  interior, 
the  tobacco  was  brought  down  to  the  river-side 
in  hogsheads,  to  which  an  axle  was  attached,  so 
that  they  could  be  rolled  and  drawn  by  a horse. 
Narrow  roads  were  cut  through  the  forest  for 
this  purpose,  which  were  called  rolling  roads, 
and  many  of  them  are  still  known  by  that  name. 

Each  plantation  was  a little  village  and  com- 
munity in  itself,  like  the  Virginia  plantations, 
but  on  a smaller  scale  than  in  Virginia ; and 
in  fa£t  all  the  resemblances  to  Virginia  were 
in  miniature.  Tobacco  was  not  so  excessively 
cultivated,  and  for  some  years  before  the  Revo- 
lution large  quantities  of  wheat  were  raised,  espe- 
cially on  the  eastern  shore,  which  built  up  many 
flour-mills  and  allied  industries  in  Baltimore. 

The  colony  was  cut  in  half  by  the  wide  bay, 
and  the  eastern  and  western  shores  were  almost 
distinfl  communities,  as  they  are  to  this  day. 
To  keep  them  united  and  to  avoid  controversy, 
184 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

great  pains  were  taken  to  make  the  two  sedtions 
equal  in  privileges,  and  give  them  the  same  repre- 
sentation in  the  legislature.  The  eastern  shore 
was  more  given  to  wheat-growing  than  the  west- 
ern, and  in  many  ways  seems  to  have  shown  less 
resemblance  to  Virginia.  Those  large  trafts  of 
scrub  oak  and  pine  on  the  western  shore  which 
we  now  pass  through  on  the  railroad  in  going 
from  Philadelphia  to  Baltimore  are  the  old  worn- 
out  tobacco  lands. 

Traffic  and  communication  being  usually 
accomplished  by  boats,  there  were  few  roads. 
The  country  almost  to  the  time  of  the  Revolu- 
tion was  largely  covered  with  forests,  with 
plantations  carved  out  of  it  along  the  winding 
shores  of  the  bay  and  its  rivers,  and  away  from 
the  water  the  plantations  became  fewer  and 
more  widely  separated. 

On  these  patches  cut  out  among  the  trees  the 
slaves  broke  up  the  land  with  great  hoes,  for 
the  plough  was  seldom  used  except  in  new 
ground.  The  overseer  rode  about  among  them 
on  horseback,  with  broad-brimmed  hat,  his  whip 
under  his  arm,  and  his  gun  strapped  to  his  back. 
He  might  want  to  defend  himself  or  shoot  game, 
or  perhaps  he  might  see  in  the  woods  a runaway 
negro  or  indented  servant,  whom  every  one  was 
in  duty  bound  to  seize.  In  later  times  wood- 
rangers  were  employed  to  capture  runaways. 

' 185 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

They  scoured  incessantly  the  swamps  and  lurk- 
ing-places, and  any  stranger  wandering  aimlessly 
about  was  apt  to  be  bluntly  asked,  “ From  whom 
have  you  run  away  ?” 

At  the  planter’s  house,  after  you  had  struggled 
through  the  circle  of  yelping  hounds  which 
crowded  with  you  up  the  steps,  you  found  the 
same  rude  plenty  as  in  Virginia.  Among  the 
upper  classes  you  found  a well-furnished  man- 
sion, with  gazettes,  copies  of  the  “ Spectator” 
and  British  poets,  with  works  on  agriculture, 
and  a family  of  no  little  pretension  in  dress  and 
behavior.  They  led  a jolly  social  life  with  all 
their  neighbors,  and  had  often  been  to  the 
Annapolis  balls  in  winter.  But  if,  in  the  midst 
of  your  investigations,  word  was  brought  that 
a ship  from  England  had  come  into  the  mouth 
of  the  creek,  instantly  you  were  deserted. 
Everybody  rushed  off  to  the  shore  to  bargain 
for  clothes,  supplies,  and  knick-knacks,  or  hear 
the  news  ; and  you  were  lucky  if  you  could  find 
an  old  crippled  negro  woman  to  give  you  a 
meal. 

Attempts  were  made  from  time  to  time  to  im- 
prove the  few  roads,  which  were  mostly  mere 
trails  in  the  woods  ; and  there  was  a curious 
road  law  passed  in  1704,  which  provided  that 
any  road  which  led  to  Annapolis  should  be 
marked  on  both  sides  with  two  notches  on  the 
186 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

trees,  and  where  it  left  another  road,  with  the 
letters  AA  cut  into  a tree.  Roads  on  the  eastern 
shore  that  led  to  Port  Williamstadt,  now  Ox- 
ford, were  to  be  marked  in  the  same  way  with 
two  notches  and  the  letter  W.  Roads  which  led 
to  county  court-houses  were  to  have  two  notches 
and  a third  some  distance  above  ; roads  leading 
to  ferries  were  to  have  two  notches  all  along, 
and  where  they  turned  aside  from  other  roads, 
three  notches  at  equal  distances  from  each  other  ; 
and  where  a road  turned  off  to  a church  it  was 
to  be  marked  with  “ a slip  cut  down  the  face  of 
the  tree  near  the  ground.” 

That  devotion  to  out-door  life  and  sports 
which  was  so  conspicuous  in  Virginia  we  find 
repeated  in  Maryland.  Game  was  so  abundant 
that  the  accounts  of  it  now  read  like  fairy-tales, 
and  in  some  respefts  it  seems  to  have  been  more 
abundant  than  in  Virginia.  Not  to  mention  the 
crabs  and  oysters  which  could  be  gathered  on 
every  shore,  wild  turkeys  were  often  seen  in 
flocks  of  a hundred,  and  deer  were  so  numer- 
ous that  some  families  lived  on  venison  alone  for 
nine  months  of  the  year.  Alsop,  who  was  a 
redemptioner,  describes  the  family  to  which  he 
was  apprenticed  as  having  hanging  up  on  one 
occasion  the  carcasses  of  eighty  deer. 

From  November  to  April  the  ducks,  wild 
geese,  and  swans  swarmed  in  the  Chesapeake 
1S7 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

in  such  prodigious  numbe-rs  that  the  writers  of 
the  time  describe  them  as  covering  the  water 
in  compact  masses  like  turf,  filling  the  air  like  a 
cloud,  and  the  vibration  of  their  wings  “like  a 
great  storm  coming  through  the  trees.”  Flocks 
a mile  wide  and  six  or  seven  miles  long  were 
sometimes  seen  feeding  near  the  shores  of  the 
bay.  They  were  shot  from  the  shore  without 
difficulty  as  they  rose  from  the  water  or  passed  a 
point,  and  a man  could  often  fill  an  ox-cart  with 
them  after  four  or  five  hours’  shooting. 

Every  one  was  compelled  to  have  arms,  and 
for  a long  time  ships  were  obliged  to  pay  their 
port  dues  in  gunpowder  and  lead.  Most  of  the 
men  had  long,  heavy  duck-guns.  An  indented 
servant  was  supposed  to  praftise  shooting  every 
Saturday  afternoon,  and  when  he  was  set  free  at 
the  close  of  his  term  of  servitude  his  master  was 
obliged  by  law  to  give  him  certain  clothes,  shirts, 
shoes,  two  hoes,  an  axe,  and  “ one  gun  of  twenty 
shillings  value,  not  above  four  feet  in  the  barrel 
nor  under  three  and  a half  feet.” 

Dogs  which  are  said  to  have  been  a cross  be- 
tween the  Newfoundland  and  the  Irish  wolf- 
hound were  bred  for  retrieving  the  ducks  ; and 
they  would  swim  far  out  into  the  bay  in  winter 
to  fetch  a cripple  or  attack  a wounded  swan. 
Attended  by  one  of  these  dogs,  the  sons  of  the 
planters  would  stand  up  to  their  knees  in  water 
1S8 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

on  a cold  day  on  the  outer  edge  of  a marsh,  load- 
ing and  firing  their  long-barrelled  guns  at  the  can- 
vas-backs ; and  return  to  drink  rum  punch  and 
Madeira,  smoke  their  clay  pipes,  and  play  cards 
till  midnight.  If  they  went  to  visit  a neighbor’s 
for  a similar  carouse  and  there  were  not  beds 
enough,  they  spread  a blanket  on  a sofa  or  on 
four  chairs,  near  the  fire,  and  snored  with  the 
dogs  and  pickaninnies. 

These  young  men  often  went  to  the  frontier, 
where  they  adopted  the  Indian  dress,  even  to 
the  breech-clout,  and,  exchanging  the  long 
shot-gun  for  an  equally  long  rifle,  hunted  wild- 
cats, deer,  bears,  and  panthers.  When  once 
they  had  tasted  of  this  life,  it  was  extremely 
difficult  for  their  parents  to  get  them  home  again. 
They  clung  to  their  Indian  dress,  would  raise 
the  war-whoop  to  frighten  peaceful  villagers, 
and  sometimes  insisted  on  going  into  church 
with  their  breech-clouts,  which  did  not  assist  the 
devotion  of  the  congregation. 

A large  part  of  the  abundance  of  birds  lasted 
down  to  the  middle  of  the  present  century, 
and  those  who  can  remember  the  shores  of  the 
Chesapeake  at  the  time  of  and  before  the  civil 
war  have  most  pleasing  recollections  of  the  in- 
terest created  by  this  wonderful  exuberance  of 
animal  life.  It  was  not  merely  the  ducks,  but 
the  quail,  the  rabbits,  the  foxes,  the  song-birds, 
1 89 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

the  blackbirds,  and  the  wild  doves  in  incredible 
numbers.  On  winter  nights,  on  a Maryland 
farm,  the  sleeper  would  be  awakened  by  a rum- 
bling like  distant  thunder,  when  a vast  mass  of 
thousands  of  ducks  rose  from  the  waters  of  the 
bay  or  river.  When  summer  came  the  small 
birds  made  it  impossible  to  sleep  after  daylight, 
and  the  woodpeckers  bored  their  holes  into  the 
eaves  of  the  house. 

In  colonial  times  troops  of  horses  ranged  wild 
in  the  woods,  as  in  Virginia, and  were  hunted  with 
the  same  zest,  and  dogs  were  often  bred  to  assist 
in  the  sport.  Every  Marylander  and  many  of 
the  women  were  fox-hunters;  and  Chief-Justice 
Taney,  in  his  autobiography,  describes  himself  as 
inordinately  addifted  in  his  youth  to  this  sport. 

A Maryland  fox-hunt  was  often  a long  one ; 
for  many  of  the  foxes  went  straight  away,  and 
not  infrequently,  on  the  eastern  shore,  crossed 
the  peninsula  from  the  Chesapeake  to  Delaware 
Bay.  The  horses  used  were  not  valued  for 
their  jumping  power,  but  for  endurance  in  a long 
ride  through  woods,  swamps,  and  fields.  If  the 
hunters  could  not  return  home  by  night,  they 
were  welcomed  at  the  nearest  plantation,  and  a 
grand  feast  prepared,  with  drinking,  dancing, 
and  card-playing  far  into  the  night,  and  then  to 
sleep  on  the  floor  before  the  fire  if  there  were 
not  beds  enough. 


190 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

The  Marylander  was  a duck-shooter,  a sailer 
of  swift  canoes,  a most  indefatigable  rider  to 
hounds,  a hard  drinker,  and  a heavy  eater,  and  all 
these  things  he  enjoyed  in  the  greatest  abun- 
dance. But,  strange  to  say,  it  was  not  until  after 
the  year  1 800  that  he  discovered  the  deliciousness 
of  the  terrapin. 

The  capacity  for  eating  two  or  three  ducks 
to  a man,  with  enormous  quantities  of  hominy 
and  goblets  of  rum  punch  and  Madeira,  has 
passed  away  from  the  American  race,  along  with 
the  abundance  and  leisure  which  gave  such  a 
zest  to  their  existence,  in  spite  of  agues  and 
bilious  fevers.  The  old  planter,  swollen  with 
gout,  bandaged  his  feet  for  the  fox-hunt,  shout- 
ing with  the  youngest,  hauled  the  seine  on  the 
shore  at  the  head  of  his  negro  gang,  or  rose 
early  in  the  morning  to  go  out  and  fish  his 
weirs. 

The  women  of  his  family  followed  very  much 
the  same  pleasures,  and  lived  in  the  saddle ; 
rode  to  balls  in  the  evening,  with  a scarlet 
riding-habit  over  their  white  satin  ball-dress, 
most  extraordinary  figures,  with  handkerchiefs 
tied  over  the  enormous  mass  of  their  puffed  and 
pomaded  hair,  and  their  hoops  spread  out 
lengthwise  on  the  horse. 

To  any  one  who  wanders  nowadays  among 
Maryland  farms  and  sees  the  almost  total  extinc- 
191 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

tion  of  the  birds  and  all  kinds  of  animal  life,  it 
is  a melancholy  refleftion  to  remember  what 
once  was.  At  houses  where  formerly  as  soon  as 
you  arrived  a man  went  to  the  shore  and  with 
one  haul  of  a small  net  took  more  fish  than  the 
family  could  eat  in  two  days,  you  can  now 
scarcely  buy  a fish  of  any  kind. 

The  fields  and  the  whole  country  are  well 
cultivated,  but  songless,  deserted,  and  stupid. 
No  troop  of  baying  hounds  salutes  you,  shaking 
their  long  ears  and  pawing  and  entangling  your 
feet,  and  the  pet  hawks  and  eagles  and  strange 
sights  and  sounds  are.  gone.  It  was  a mistake 
to  allow  all  this  life  of  pleasure  to  be  ruthlessly 
extinguished,  and  the  people  are  none  the  better 
for  it. 

The  province  was  almost  as  townless  as 
Virginia,  but  the  natural  conditions  seemed  to 
show  somewhat  more  reason  for  the  existence 
of  towns,  and  the  legislature  at  times  made  most 
frantic  efforts  to  create  them.  At  one  time,  in 
1706,  it  attempted  to  bring  forth  forty-two  of 
them  in  one  litter,  and  many  other  efforts  were 
made  which  were  not  quite  so  ambitious.  The 
fate  of  nearly  every  one  of  them  was  swift  and 
sure.  They  were  staked  out  in  the  middle  of 
fields  or  woods,  and  divided  into  lots  of  an 
acre  each,  with  streets  and  alleys.  The  original 
owner  of  the  land  was  given  one  lot,  and  the  rest 
192 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

were  distributed  to  whoever  would  take  them  in 
consideration  of  an  annual  quit-rent  of  a penny 
to  the  Lord  Proprietor.  Then  when  the  failure 
of  the  attempt  was  evident,  an  aft  of  the  legisla- 
ture was  passed  by  which  the  traft  of  land  was 
“ untowned”  and  reverted  to  its  former  owner. 

On  the  death  of  Cecil  Calvert,  in  1675,  after 
his  long  rule  of  over  forty  years,  his  eldest  son, 
Charles,  became  Lord  Baltimore  and  proprietor 
of  Maryland.  Cecil  had  always  governed  the 
province  from  England,  but  Charles  was  some- 
times in  England  and  sometimes  in  the  province. 
The  peaceful  conditions  that  had  blessed  the  last 
fifteen  years  of  Cecil’s  rule  continued  for  a time; 
but  Charles  soon  had  difficulties  and  dangers  of 
his  own,  the  result  of  changed  times  in  England. 
He  was  not  so  lucky  in  meeting  them  as  his  father 
had  been,  and  lost  the  province. 

The  feeling  of  unrest  and  incipient  revolt 
which  had  always  charafterized  the  Puritans  of 
the  northern  half  of  the  province  was  still  strong, 
but  there  were  no  opportunities  for  an  outbreak. 
Fendall,  who  had  led  the  rebellion  at  the  resto- 
ration of  Charles  II.,  was  at  large  and  engaged  in 
one  or  two  conspiracies  for  the  overthrow  of 
the  proprietary  power,  but  they  were  of  trifling 
importance  and  easily  suppressed. 

Almost  immediately  after  Charles  Calvert 
took  the  government,  the  Church  of  England 
Vol.  11.— 13  193 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

people  appeared  as  a distinct  party  in  the  com- 
munity and  sent  complaints  to  England.  One 
of  the  clergy  wrote  to  the  Archbishop  of  Can- 
terbury that  the  Catholic  priests  were  provided 
for  and  the  Quakers  could  take  care  of  them- 
selves, but  that  no  measures  had  been  taken  for 
the  advancement  of  the  established  church, 
which  had  only  three  clergymen  ; and  as  a con- 
sequence religion  was  despised,  notorious  vices 
committed,  and  the  colony  had  become  “ a 
Sodom  of  uncleanness  and  a pest-house  of 
iniquity.” 

Charles,  who  was  then  in  England,  resisted 
this  attack,  which  he  knew  was  intended  to  ac- 
complish the  establishment  of  the  Church  of 
England  by  law  in  Maryland,  as  it  was  already 
established  by  law  in  Virginia.  He  argued 
against  it  before  the  Privy  Council,  giving  the 
old  reasons  which  his  father  had  so  often  given, 
that  every  form  of  Protestantism  had  full 
religious  liberty  in  Maryland,  that  the  majority 
of  the  people  were  Protestants,  and  that  if  any 
particular  church  or  seft  was  not  succeeding,  it 
was  its  own  fault. 

He  had  not  inherited,  it  seems,  the  full 
measure  of  his  father’s  influence,  for  the  Privy 
Council  decided  against  him.  They  announced 
that  there  should  be  some  maintenance  for  the 
clergy  of  the  established  church,  that  Lord  Bal- 
194 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

timore  himself  “ should  propose  some  means  for 
the  support  of  a competent  number”  of  them, 
and  that  the  laws  against  vice  should  be  promptly 
executed.  It  was  certainly  a strange  predicament 
for  a Roman  Catholic  proprietor  to  be  obliged 
to  establish  the  Church  of  England  in  his  own 
colony,  and  a difficulty  into  which  Cecil  Calvert 
had  never  fallen. 

The  question,  however,  was  dropped  for  a 
time,  and  Charles  returned  to  Maryland,  where 
he  took  means  to  have  laws  passed  for  the  sup- 
pression of  vice  and  the  better  observance  of 
Sunday.  But  the  Puritans  and  Fendall  were  still 
at  work,  and  the  feeling  against  Roman  Catholics 
was  at  this  time  aroused  to  new  activity  by  the 
supposed  “ popish  plot”  which  the  infamous 
Titus  Oates  professed  to  have  discovered  in 
England. 

Charles  had  to  meet  fresh  complaints  sent  to 
England,  which  this  time  accused  him  of  par- 
tiality to  Catholics.  He  again  repeated  the  old 
arguments,  adding  that  the  offices  of  government 
were  divided  equally  between  Protestants  and 
Catholics,  that  the  command  of  the  militia  was 
given  almost  exclusively  to  Protestants,  and  these 
assertions  were  supported  in  a document  signed 
by  prominent  members  of  the  Church  of  Eng- 
land. But  the  fear  of  trusting  the  adherents  of 
the  Pope  with  any  governmental  power  had 
195 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

become  very  strong  in  England,  and  the  ministry 
ordered  that  all  public  offices  in  Maryland  should 
be  given  to  Protestants.  The  colony  was  evi- 
dently becoming  less  Roman  Catholic  than  ever. 

Will  iam  Penn  had  been  given  his  vast  prov- 
ince of  Pennsylvania  in  1682,  and  Charles  Cal- 
vert was  soon  involved  in  a boundary  dispute 
with  him,  which  was  continued  by  the  two 
proprietors  and  their  descendants  for  the  next 
seventy  years.*  About  the  same  time  serious 
complaints  were  made  against  Calvert  for  allow- 
ing his  officials  to  obstruft  the  colleflion  of  the 
royal  revenue  tax  on  tobacco.  Two  of  the 
king’s  revenue  officers  were  killed,  and  Calvert 
received  a severe  reprimand  from  the  crown, 
was  ordered  to  pay  at  once  the  two  thousand 
five  hundred  pounds  of  duties  which  had  not 
been  collefted,  and  was  reminded  that  only 
the  clemency  of  the  king  had  saved  his  charter, 
which  could  have  been  forfeited  for  such  mis- 
conduct. 

His  misfortunes  steadily  increased.  James  II. 
came  to  the  throne  in  1685,  and,  as  he  was  a 
Roman  Catholic,  it  might  be  expected  that 
Calvert  would  now  enjoy  in  the  fullest  manner 
the  favor  of  the  crown ; but,  instead  of  that. 


* For  a full  account  of  this  controversy,  see  “ The 
Making  of  Pennsylvania,”  p.  318. 

196 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

James  had  scarcely  been  king  two  years  when  he 
began  proceedings  to  annul  the  Maryland  charter 
and  bring  the  province  into  more  immediate  de- 
pendence on  the  crown.  He  had  taken  similar 
aftion,  as  we  have  already  seen,  in  some  of  the 
other  colonies. 

Andros  was  made  governor  of  all  the  New 
England  colonies,  and  soon  after  New  York  and 
New  Jersey  were  added  to  his  jurisdiftion. 
Pennsylvania,  however,  escaped  entirely,  for 
Penn  was  a close  friend  and  favorite  of  James. 
But  the  Calvert  family  seemed  to  have  lost  all 
their  favor  and  power  at  court,  and  to  have  in- 
curred the  hostility  of  the  monarch  who  was  of 
their  own  faith.  In  truth,  after  the  death  of 
Cecil  the  family  steadily  degenerated. 

Charles  inherited  none  of  his  father’s  courtier 
skill.  He  spent  a great  part  of  the  time  in  Mary- 
land, enjoyed  the  life  he  led  there,  and  expressed 
a decided  distaste  for  England.  As  a governor 
in  direX  contaX  with  his  people  he  was  very 
successful,  and,  if  we  can  accept  as  sincere  the 
votes  of  gratitude,  thanks,  and  admiration  for  his 
beneficent  rule  which  the  assembly  passed,  he 
must  have  been  very  popular.  But  he  failed  to 
appreciate  the  absolute  necessity  of  a strong  con- 
nexion in  England  and  at  court;  and  the  more 
he  lived  in  the  province  the  more  he  acquired 
its  point  of  view,  lost  his  position  as  an  English 
197 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

nobleman,  and  unfitted  himself  for  acquiring 
influence  with  the  king. 

Before  the  proceedings  to  annul  his  charter 
could  be  consummated,  William  of  Orange 
landed  in  England  and  drove  James  from  the 
throne.  Charles  Calvert  was  now  in  England, 
whither  he  had  gone  to  save  his  charter,  and  he 
had  left  a man  named  Joseph  as  temporary  gov- 
ernor of  Maryland.  The  contest  between  the 
Protestant  William  of  Orange  and  the  Catholic 
James  II.  renewed  the  fierce  antagonism  be- 
tween the  two  religions  which  had  been  slum- 
bering for  years.  The  Maryland  Puritans  were 
alert  and  suspicious,  and  Calvert  soon  had  some 
of  his  usual  bad  luck. 

He  had  submitted  himself  to  King  William, 
and  sent  a messenger,  ordering  him  to  be  pro- 
claimed sovereign  in  Maryland.  The  messen- 
ger, unfortunately,  died  on  the  route,  and  the 
Puritans  heard  of  all  the  other  colonies  pro- 
claiming William,  but  had  no  instructions  for  a 
proclamation  from  Lord  Baltimore.  Virginia, 
always  ready  to  seize  such  an  opportunity,  sent 
complaints  to  England,  and  some  of  the  Puri- 
tans started  a story  that  there  was  a Catholic 
plot  to  destroy  the  Protestants  with  the  assist- 
ance of  the  Indians. 

Messengers  arrived  reporting  thousands  of 
Indians  assembled  at  certain  points,  and  when 
198 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

none  were  found,  they  were  reported  farther  on 
or  in  other  places,  john  Coode,  who  had  been 
concerned  in  previous  rebellions,  busied  himself 
as  a leader,  and  Kenelm  Cheseldyn,  Blakiston 
Beebe,  and  Colonel  Jowles  were  active  partici- 
pants. An  association  was  formed  to  proteft 
the  Protestant  religion  and  the  sovereignty  of 
King  William  and  Queen  Mary.  By  the  1 6th 
of  July,  1689,  a small  Puritan  army,  under  the 
command  of  Coode,  was  collefted  on  the  Po- 
tomac, announcing  that  it  was  prepared  to  pro- 
teft  the  Protestants  from  the  papists  and  North- 
ern Indians,  who  intended  to  descend  on  the 
province  in  August  “ when  roasting  ears  were  in 
season.” 

Coode  and  his  followers  soon  seized  the  gov- 
ernment at  St.  Mary’s  and  published  a Declara- 
tion of  charges  against  Lord  Baltimore  and  his 
methods.  He  had  been  building  up  his  own 
power  in  the  colony  at  the  expense  of  the  sov- 
ereignty of  the  crown,  and  to  name  or  own  the 
king’s  power  was  sufficient  to  incur  the  frowns 
of  his  lordship.  He  had  affronted  the  king’s 
officers  of  the  customs,  had  forcibly  detained 
one  of  them,  and  another  one  had  been  mur- 
dered by  an  Irish  papist.  He  had  oppressed  the 
people,  established  popish  idolatry  instead  of 
the  churches  and  chapels  of  the  ecclesiastical 
laws  of  England,  given  the  most  fertile  lands  to 
199 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

Romish  churches,  and  forfeited  the  lands  of  the 
Protestant  ministry.  He  had  vetoed  the  best  a£ts 
passed  by  the  assembly,  disposed  of  Protestant 
orphans  to  be  brought  up  in  Romish  superstition, 
separated  a young  woman  from  her  husband  and 
committed  her  to  the  custody  of  a papist,  im- 
posed excessive  fees,  seized  Protestants  in  their 
houses  by  armed  forces  of  papists  and  com- 
mitted them  to  prison  without  warrant,  allowed 
no  redress  for  outrages  and  murders  committed 
by  Catholics,  and  used  every  means  to  divert  the 
obedience  of  the  people  from  the  new  Protes- 
tant king  and  queen. 

His  agents,  the  priests  and  Jesuits,  the  Dec- 
laration continued,  had  used  solemn  masses  and 
prayers  for  the  success  of  the  popish  forces  in 
Ireland  and  the  French  designs  against  England, 
and  on  every  side  could  be  heard  protestations 
against  their  majesties’  right  to  the  crown  and 
vilification  of  their  persons.  For  these  reasons 
the  people  of  Maryland  had  taken  up  arms  to 
vindicate  and  assert  the  sovereignty  of  King 
William  and  to  defend  the  Protestant  religion. 

Such  was  the  Protestant  indiftment  of  the 
proprietary  Catholic  government  of  Maryland. 
Some  of  the  charges  seem  exaggerated,  but  the 
obscurity  and  confusion  of  the  colony’s  history 
make  it  extremely  difficult  to  test  the  truth  of 
any  of  them.  Coode  was  soon  in  possession  of 


200 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

the  whole  province,  for  the  Catholics  were 
powerless  to  offer  any  resistance,  and  in  every 
quarter  surrendered  on  demand.  An  address 
was  then  sent  to  the  king,  announcing  that 
Maryland  had  been  rescued  from  his  majesty’s 
enemies  “ without  the  expense  of  one  drop  of 
blood,”  and  that  it  was  held  to  await  his  further 
orders  in  regard  to  it. 

Addresses  to  the  king,  asking  him  to  take  the 
colony  under  his  direCt  protection  and  govern- 
ment, were  soon  prepared  in  all  parts  of  the 
colony,  signed  by  hundreds  of  names,  and  sent 
to  England.  The  majority  of  the  people  were 
unquestionably  in  favor  of  the  rebellion  ; but 
there  was  a respectable  minority  of  Protestants 
who  sent  counter-addresses,  accusing  Coode  and 
his  followers  of  falsehood,  tyranny,  and  mis- 
government,  denying  all  the  charges  against 
Lord  Baltimore,  and  asking  that  his  government 
and  province  be  restored  to  him. 

On  this  occasion  Charles  Carroll,  founder  of 
the  family  of  that  name,  appears  for  the  first 
time  in  Maryland  history,  and  his  letter  to  Cal- 
vert describes  in  strong  language  the  confusion 
and  misery  in  the  province  and  the  destruction 
of  cattle  and  property  under  the  rule  of  “ such 
profligate  wretches  as  Coode,  Thurling,  and 
Jowles,  and  such  fools  as  they  have  poisoned  by 
the  most  absurd  lies  that  ever  were  invented.” 


201 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

In  England,  however,  William  III.  took  the 
side  of  the  Maryland  Protestant  majority,  ap- 
proved their  adlion,  and  accepted  the  province 
as  they  offered  it  to  him.  The  leaders  of  the 
rebellion  had  held  the  government  for  six  months 
before  the  king  recognized  them,  and  he  in- 
structed them  to  continue  to  hold  it  for  him  and 
keep  the  peace. 

Meantime  the  Privy  Council  considered  the 
charges  against  Lord  Baltimore,  and  in  August, 
1690,  a year  after  the  rebellion  had  begun, 
ordered  the  attorney-general  to  proceed  against 
the  charter  and  coiled  proof  of  the  proprietor’s 
misconduft.  At  the  same  time  the  Puritan 
council  in  Maryland  sent  to  the  king  a docu- 
ment in  which  they  renewed  the  charges  against 
Baltimore,  declared  themselves  ready  to  prove 
them  at  any  time,  and  added  other  “ insolencys, 
misdemeanors,  and  outrages”  which  had  been 
recently  perpetrated  by  his  agents.  A certain 
tax  on  tobacco  had,  they  said,  been  misappro- 
priated by  his  lordship,  who  was  now  in  arrears 
to  the  province  at  least  thirty-six  thousand 
pounds  ; but  the  exaft  amount  could  not  be  dis- 
covered, because  his  agents  refused  to  show  the 
account. 

The  proceedings  against  the  charter  were 
never  completed,  and  there  never  was  a final  de- 
cision either  for  it  or  against  it,  which  was  un- 


202 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

fortunate,  because  it  has  left  the  charges  of  Bal- 
timore’s misgovernment  and  oppression  neither 
proved  nor  disproved.  William  III.  finally 
grew  tired  of  the  slow  procedure  and  took  pos- 
session of  the  province  without  regard  to  Balti- 
more’s rights,  and  the  proceedings  against  the 
charter  were  abandoned.  Sir  Lionel  Copley 
was  sent  out  in  August,  1691,  to  be  the  royal 
governor,  after  the  leaders  of  the  rebellion  had 
been  holding  the  province  for  two  years. 

Baltimore’s  ownership  of  all  the  land  of  the 
province  and  his  quit-rents  and  revenues  were, 
of  course,  left  unimpaired,  and  in  this  respedt 
he  was  in  as  good  a position  as  ever.  The 
political  power  or  right  to  govern  was  all  that 
was  taken  from  him. 

William  III.  had  also  in  the  same  way  de- 
prived Penn  of  his  right  to  govern  Pennsylvania, 
without  in  this  case  even  attempting  to  forfeit 
his  charter.  The  chief  reason  for  depriving 
Penn  of  his  political  power  seems  to  have  been 
that,  the  military  force  of  the  colony  being  weak 
and  likely  to  continue  so  under  Quaker  rule,  it 
might  at  any  time  be  captured  by  the  French 
or  other  enemies  of  England.  Penn  had  also 
been  a close  friend  of  the  dethroned  James  II., 
and  might  reasonably  be  suspefted  of  favoring 
him.  But  Penn  was  a Protestant,  and  soon 
cleared  himself  of  all  suspicions ; so  that  his 
203 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

government  was  restored  to  him  within  less 
than  two  years,  while  the  Baltimores  were  kept 
from  theirs  for  twenty-five  years,  when,  as  they 
had  become  Protestants,  it  was  restored  in  1715. 

Under  the  new  royal  government  almost  the 
first  aft  of  importance  was  to  establish  by  law 
the  Church  of  England,  and  a yearly  tax  of  forty 
pounds  of  tobacco  on  each  taxable  person  was 
to  be  levied  for  its  support.  Maryland  was 
now  no  more  a Catholic  colony  than  were  the 
other  colonies  which  contained  a few  Catholic 
citizens. 

The  Maryland  Catholics  were  principally 
collefted  in  St.  Mary’s  County,  on  the  Poto- 
mac, in  the  extreme  southern  part  of  the  prov- 
ince, where  the  first  landing  and  settlement  had 
been  made,  and  which  always  had  been  the  seat 
of  government.  In  1694,  however,  it  was  de- 
cided to  move  the  seat  of  government  to  the  old 
Puritan  stronghold  which  had  been  called  suc- 
cessively Providence,  Anne  Arundel  Town,  and 
afterwards  Annapolis,  which  was  nearer  the 
centre  of  the  province,  and  in  a more  fertile  and 
prosperous  part  of  the  country. 

The  people  of  St.  Mary’s,  foreseeing  the  re- 
sults, resisted  this  movement,  but  in  vain.  The 
presence  of  the  seat  of  government  had  been 
their  only  hold  on  prosperity  ; and  when  it  was 
removed,  being  unsupported  by  natural  advan- 
204 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

tages,  the  interesting  old  town  of  so  many  con- 
tests and  memories  wasted  away  until  it  became 
as  much  of  a desolation  and  ruin  as  Jamestown 
in  Virginia. 

St.  Mary’s  had  been  the  only  town  of  the 
colony,  and  when  the  seat  of  government  was 
moved  to  Annapolis,  that,  in  its  turn,  became  the 
only  town;  for  Maryland  was  very  much  like 
Virginia  in  its  civilization,  with  all  the  people 
living  on  plantations,  which  on  the  western 
shore  were  usually  for  tobacco  and  on  the 
eastern  for  wheat. 

The  Protestants  and  their  new  government 
had  progressive  ideas  and  made  every  effort  to 
improve  Annapolis.  They  built  a brick  state- 
house  and  a free  school,  also  of  brick,  which  was 
the  first  attempt  at  general  public  education  that 
had  been  made  in  the  colony.  The  free  school 
in  Annapolis,  named  King  William  School,  was 
soon  under  way  and  flourishing  ; but  the  design 
of  the  people  and  the  assembly  was  to  establish 
a free  school  in  every  county,  and  from  time  to 
time  afts  were  passed  for  this  end,  levying 
taxes  on  furs,  beef,  and  some  other  exports. 
Assistance  was  obtained  from  England,  the 
Archbishop  of  Canterbury  was  persuaded  to  en- 
courage the  undertaking,  fines,  forfeitures,  and 
escheated  estates  helped  to  swell  the  fund,  and 
after  some  years  the  schools  were  established 
205 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

under  the  control  and  encouragement  of  the 
Church  of  England. 

The  metropolis  and  centre  of  life  in  colonial 
times  were  always  at  Annapolis,  which  occupied 
very  much  the  same  position  as  Williamsburg  in 
Virginia.  The  wealthy  planters  resorted  to  it 
for  the  dances  and  assemblies,  and  many  of  them 
lived  there  in  substantial  houses,  where  they  in- 
dulged in  the  most  extravagant  hospitality.  The 
governor’s  house  and  the  homes  of  the  Carrolls 
and  the  Pacas  were  the  principal  scenes  of  this 
festivity. 

Situated  on  a peninsula  overlooking  the  river 
and  bay,  with  a view  across  to  the  eastern  shore, 
the  town  was  laid  out  with  great  care.  A large 
circle  was  made  on  the  highest  point,  which  was 
occupied  by  the  government  buildings,  and 
behind  it  was  a smaller  circle  for  the  church. 
From  these  circles  the  streets  radiated  in  every 
direftion.  A part  of  the  water  front  was 
reserved  for  wharves  and  the  rest  devoted  to 
residences  with  terraced  grounds  and  gardens 
reaching  to  the  river,  a few  of  which  still  survive. 
The  tradespeople  were  striftlv  confined  to  a 
certain  distrift,  and  no  offensive  occupations 
could  be  carried  on  in  the  residence  quarter. 
When  the  gentlemen  were  masquerading  in  their 
quarter,  the  common  people  were  not  even  per- 
mitted to  be  in  the  streets  of  it. 

206 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

It  must  have  been  a really  beautiful  little  min- 
iature city,  reproducing  English  ways  and  cus- 
toms. By  the  year  1750  its  Puritan  traits  had 
all  passed  away,  and  one  who  knew  it  well  said 
that  there  was  not  a town  in  England  of  the 
same  size  that  could  boast  of  so  many  fashiona- 
ble and  handsome  women.  The  phantom  pleas- 
ure was  pursued  with  avidity ; the  races  lasted 
four  days,  there  were  numerous  dancing  assem- 
blies, the  theatre  was  encouraged  more  than 
anywhere  else  in  America,  and  there  were  six- 
teen clubs. 

We  are  apt  to  think  club  life  rather  abnor- 
mally developed  in  our  own  time,  but,  in  pro- 
portion to  its  numbers,  no  modern  town  could 
in  this  respeft  equal  Annapolis.  One  was  called 
the  Hominy  Club,  and  another  the  Drumstick. 
The  Tuesday  Club  had  among  its  members 
prominent  men  from  the  other  colonies,  and 
all  these  clubs  were  devoted  to  stimulating  the 
social  life. 

From  the  short  statements  in  their  little  news- 
paper, the  Gazette,  the  typical  amusements  of  a 
day  of  pleasure  in  Annapolis  seem  to  have  been 
to  fire  off  guns,  drink  loyal  healths,  have  a ball  in 
the  evening,  with  the  whole  town  illuminated  and 
punch  distributed  among  the  populace  at  the 
bonfire.  They  fired  guns  and  salutes  on  every 
possible  occasion.  In  the  issue  for  July  15, 
207 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

1746,  we  see  the  work  of  the  clubs,  some  of 
which  appear  to  have  had  houses  of  their  own, 
as  in  modern  times : 

“ The  gentlemen  belonging  to  the  ‘ Ancient  South  River 
Club,'  to  express  their  loyalty  to  his  majesty,  on  the  suc- 
cess of  the  inimitable  Duke  of  Cumberland’s  obtaining 
a complete  viftory  over  the  pretender,  and  delivering  us 
from  persecution  at  home,  and  popery  and  invasion  from 
abroad,  have  appointed  a grand  entertainment  to  be  given 
at  their  club  house  on  Thursday  next.” 

There  was  also  a jockey  club  which  encour- 
aged the  horse-races,  of  which  all  classes  in 
Maryland  are  still  very  fond.  The  subscription 
purses  began  at  a hundred  guineas  and  were 
afterwards  greatly  increased.  The  betting  was 
high,  and  the  Virginians,  of  course,  came  up 
in  large  numbers  for  these  sports,  which  always 
closed  with  a ball.  But  Annapolis  had  not  a 
monopoly  of  horse-races,  for  we  find  them  held 
everywhere, — at  Marlborough,  Joppa,  Chester- 
town,  Elkridge,  and  Williamstadt,  as  Oxford 
was  then  called  ; in  fact,  wherever  people  con- 
gregated; and  finally  they  began  to  have  them  at 
Quaker  meetings. 

The  races  were  four-mile  heats,  and  en- 
durance rather  than  a sudden  burst  of  speed  for 
one  mile  was  the  test.  The  horses  were  usually 
six  or  eight  years  old  instead  of  two  or  three,  as 
in  our  times ; and  the  system  is  supposed  by 
208 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

some  to  have  encouraged  a sounder,  healthier 
breed  of  animals  than  can  be  had  under  the 
modern  forcing  method. 

Besides  the  ball,  the  races,  not  only  at  Annap- 
olis but  at  other  places,  usually  ended  with  a 
performance  by  Hallam  Henry’s  Dramatic  Com- 
pany, which  contained  some  good  aftors,  and 
played  in  Maryland  every  season  for  more  than 
twenty  years.  Annapolis  has  the  honor  of  estab- 
lishing the  first  theatre  in  the  colonies.  The 
first  play-bill  ever  printed  in  America  appeared 
in  its  newspaper,  the  Gazette,  July  2,  1752. 
The  plays  announced  were  “ The  Busybody” 
and  “ The  Lying  Valet,”  “ to  begin  precisely  at 
seven  o’clock  ; no  persons  to  be  admitted  be- 
hind the  scenes.”  Afterwards  the  company 
played  “ Richard  III.,”  “ The  Beggar’s  Opera,” 
“ Cato,”  “ The  Sham  Doftor,”  “ Miss  in  her 
Teens,”  and  “ George  Barnwell.” 

But  we  are  not  yet  through  with  the  races  ; 
for  at  the  close  of  the  week  in  which  they  were 
held  there  were  also  bull-baitings  and  cock- 
fights. Farmers,  blacksmiths,  carpenters,  and 
gentlemen  all  bred  cocks  and  fought  them. 
The  people  were  almost  insane  about  this  amuse- 
ment, and  Puritans  who  were  inclined  to  look 
askance  at  the  theatre  never  hesitated  about  a 
cock-fight. 

“ Did  you  ever  make  anything  by  cock-fight- 
VOL.  II. — 14  209 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

ing  ?”  was  asked  of  an  elderly  man,  carrying  an 
eight-pound  cock  under  his  arm. 

“ Make  ! It  has  cost  me  thousands  of  dol- 
lars.” 

“ What  do  you  do  it  for,  then  ?” 

“ Why,  it’s  the  prettiest  sight  in  the  world.” 
The  ladies  of  Annapolis  were  not  without 
spirit,  and  we  find  an  entry  in  the  court  records 
that  Mrs.  S.  C.,  of  Patapsco,  was  fined  only  one 
penny  for  whipping  a man  with  a hickory 
switch,  “ it  being  imagined  by  the  court  that  he 
well  deserved  it.” 

William  Black,  who  in  the  year  1744  was 
secretary  to  some  commissioners  who  came  from 
Virginia  to  Philadelphia  to  assist  in  making  an 
Indian  treaty,  gives  us  a lively  pifture  of  the  life 
of  the  times.  They  embarked  on  the  yacht 
Margaret,  at  Stratford,  on  the  Potomac ; and 
after  getting  under  way,  he  says,  “we  hailed 
with  the  trumpet  the  company  who  came  to  the 
water  side  to  see  us  on  board  with  ‘ Fare-you- 
well,’  who  returned  the  compliment,  wishing  us 
a good  voyage  and  safe  return  ; for  which,  on 
the  part  of  the  company,  I gave  them  thanks, 
with  the  discharge  of  our  blunderbuss.” 

Stopping  at  Annapolis,  they  were  entertained 
by  the  governor  with  punch,  wines,  strawberries, 
and  ice-cream,  followed  by  a series  of  dinners 
at  all  the  principal  houses,  for  their  presence 


210 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

was  a grand  event  for  the  townsmen.  He  de- 
scribes one  of  several  balls  which  were  given 
them.  The  ladies  made  “a  splendid  appear- 
ance and  “ in  a Room  back  from  that  where 
they  Danced  was  several  sorts  of  Wines,  Punch 
and  Sweet  Meats,  in  this  Room  those  that  were 
not  Engaged  in  any  Dancing  Match  might 
either  Employ  themselves  at  Cards,  Dice,  Back- 
Gamon,  or  with  a cheerful  Glass.” 

Everywhere  “the  Glass  was  pushed  brisJdy.” 
When  received  by  the  governor,  they  discoursed 
for  a while  over  glasses  of  punch  ; then  dinner, 
and  after  that  more  discourse  and  the  glass  again. 

In  the  “Sot  Weed  Factor,”  a rather  clever 
satire  on  Maryland  life,  there  is  a description 
of  a court  day  at  a country  village,  which  is,  of 
course,  an  exaggeration,  but  assists  in  showing 
the  conditions  of  the  time.  “ Roaring  planters” 
were  drinking  healths  in  circles,  with  their 
horses  hitched  to  trees  ; and  soon  jury,  lawyers, 
judge,  and  constables  were  engaged  in  a general 
fight,  with  the  sheriff  superintending  and  picking 
up  stray  wigs  : 

“ Where  all  things  were  in  such  confusion, 

I thought  the  world  at  its  conclusion ; 

A Herd  of  Planters  on  the  ground, 

O’erwhelmed  with  Punch,  dead  drunk,  we  found, 
Others  were  fighting  and  contending, 

Some  burnt  their  clothes  to  save  the  mending.” 


21 1 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

The  faftor  found  every  room  occupied  in  the 
inn,  and  had  to  sleep  in  a corn-crib.  In  the 
morning  his  hat,  shoes,  and  horses  were  gone 
and  his  drunken  servants  stripped  and  left  naked 
on  the  table.  But  a great  planter,  or  Cocker- 
ouse,  as  the  Indians  always  called  such  a man, 
politely  invited  him  home  “to  take  a Bottle  at 
his  Seat,”  which  is  described  as  an  “ antient 
Cedar  House”  buried  among  trees  and  vines. 

In  the  harbor  of  Annapolis,  in  plain  sight 
from  most  of  the  houses,  lay  vessels  from  all 
parts  of  the  world  ; for  the  little  town  had  its 
commercial  day  before  the  rise  of  Baltimore. 
The  houses  were  in  the  most  perfeft  forms  of 
the  colonial  architefture.  White  Hall  and  the 
Chase,  Scott,  Ridout,  Brice,  Harwood,  and  Welch 
houses  still  remain  as  examples  to  reform  our 
taste,  and  there  are  few  other  places  in  the  coun- 
try where  such  interesting  and  valuable  treasures 
of  this  old  art  can  be  found. 

The  men  and  women,  who,  like  the  rest  of  the 
Maryland  gentry,  ordered  champagne  from 
Europe  by  the  cask  and  Madeira  by  the  pipe, 
also  dressed  expensively  in  the  latest  English 
fashions,  and  French  travellers  said  that  they  had 
seldom  seen  such  clothes  outside  of  Paris. 
They  had  French  barbers,  negro  slaves  in  livery, 
and  drove  light  carriages, — an  extremely  rare  in- 
dulgence in  colonial  times.  The  clubs  got  up 


212 


Whitehall 
Annapolis,  Md 
Built  1764 


Puritan  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

room  occupied  in  the 
a corn-crib.  In  the 
and  horses  were  gone 


i:r;k  .'it  stripped  and  left  naked 

at  planter,' or  Cocker- 
i,,e,  as  ; always  called  such  a man, 

..•if re?'.  home  “to  take  a Bottle  at 

, Sc  . ..  ' • . is  described  as  an  “ antient 
Cedar  ; a..  buried  among  trees  and  vines. 


in  the  harbor  of  Annapolis-,  in  plain  sight 
from  most  of  the  houses,  lay  vessels  from  all 
parts  of  the  world;  for  the  little  town  had  its 
: ommercial  day  before  the  rise  of  Baltimore. 
The  houses  were  in  the  most  perfedl  forms  of 
the  colonial  archicefture.  White  Hall  and  the 
Chase,  Scott,  Ridout,  Brice,  Harwood,  and  Welch 
houses  still  remain  as  examples  to  reform  our 
caste,  and  there  are  few  other  places  in  the  coun- 
try where  such  interesting  and  valuable  treasures 
of  this  old  art  can  be  found. 

The  men  and  women,  who,  like  the  rest  of  the 
Maryland  gentry,  ordered  champagne  from 
Europe  bv  t\\c  cask  arid  Madeira  by  the  pipe, 
also  dressed  e pensively  in  the  latest  English 
fashions,  and  French  travellers  said  that  they  had 
seldom  :n  such  iT  ! outside  of  Paris. 
Tliev  had  'Tench  barbs,  rs,  negro  slaves  .in  livery, 
light  carriage— ^extremdy  rare  in- 
dulgence in  coJonia^r^'v^he  clubs  got  up 

fciyli  JliuH 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

excursions,  picnics,  and  fishing  parties.  Balls 
were  given  on  all  the  great  English  anniversaries, 
and  the  birthday  of  the  proprietor  and  saints’ 
days  were  used  as  excuses.  Saint  Tamina  had  a 
society  in  his  honor,  for  balls,  masquerades,  and 
May-pole  dances. 

They  gambled,  of  course,  after  the  universal 
custom  of  the  times,  flirted  or  pretended  to  flirt, 
like  the  modern  Marylander,  discussed  the  last 
vessel  from  England,  the  prospers  of  the  tobacco 
crop,  and  the  quarrels  of  the  proprietors  and 
the  crown.  Visitors  were  frequent  from  the 
Northern  and  Southern  colonies.  In  spring  the 
wealthy  people  departed  for  their  manors  or 
country  places — De  La  Brooke,  Kent  Fort, 
Bohemia,  or  Bel  Air — in  great  coaches  of  light 
yellow  color  with  Venetian  windows  and  pro- 
jecting lamps. 

One  of  the  most  interesting  houses  in  Maryland, 
- — Doughoregan  Manor,  in  Howard  County, — 
which  is  still  standing,  belonged  to  the  Carrolls, 
who  spent  many  a bright  day  in  Annapolis. 
The  buildings  are  long  and  rather  low,  but  in 
beautiful  proportion,  and  include  a Roman 
Catholic  chapel, — a relic  of  the  times,  which  we 
shall  soon  describe,  when  the  Catholics  of  Mary- 
land were  not  allowed  to  have  public  places  of 
worship.  The  whole  length  of  the  mansion  is 
three  hundred  feet  on  the  front,  and  only 
213 


one 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

room  deep.  At  one  end  is  the  chapel,  at  the 
other  wings,  and  in  the  centre  the  family  resi- 
dence, with  a wide  hall  heavily  panelled,  a 
dining-room  arched  and  recessed,  and  a library 
wainscoted  high  up  in  oak,  in  which  Charles 
Carroll,  one  of  the  signers  of  the  Declaration 
of  Independence,  passed  his  last  days  reading 
Cicero’s  “ De  Seneftute.” 

We  can  understand  how  all  this  high  life  in 
Maryland  was  possible  when  we  read  that  John 
Beale  Bordley  made  nine  hundred  pounds  on  a 
single  shipment  of  wheat  to  Barcelona.  Farm- 
ing was  at  that  time,  in  both  Maryland  and  Vir- 
ginia, a paying  business,  and  lawyers,  doctors, 
and  clergymen  were  all  farmers.  They  were 
tempted  to  live  beyond  their  means,  and  bank- 
ruptcy and  disasters  were  frequent.  When  the 
shrinkage  came  after  the  Revolution,  the  grand 
life  gradually  went  to  pieces,  as  in  Virginia. 

The  Bordleys  were  among  the  highest  livers, 
and  have  left  interesting  memoirs.  Stephen 
Bordley  kept  bachelor’s  hall  in  Annapolis,  with 
a cellar  full  of  wine,  handsome  plate,  furniture, 
and  linen,  and  a good  library.  He  enjoyed  a 
good  income  from  his  practice  at  the  bar,  and 
held  important  offices.  The  judges  dined  with 
him  whenever  they  came  to  Annapolis, — every- 
body dined  with  him,  and  he  died  of  the  gout, 
like  a hero. 


214 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

His  younger  brother,  John  Beale  Bordley, 
thought  it  necessary  to  call  a halt  in  this  life, 
so  he  went  to  live  at  Joppa,  and  became  a fox- 
hunting planter,  raising  a large  family  and  grow- 
ing rich.  But  half  of  Wye  Island  was  left  to 
him,  and  there  he  set  up  a grand  establishment, 
making  his  own  flour,  beer,  and  bricks,  weaving 
cloth  for  his  people,  having  his  own  carpenters, 
blacksmiths,  and  coopers,  and  even  manufaftur- 
ing  his  own  salt.  Visitors  came  to  him,  passing 
to  and  fro  to  the  island,  sometimes  appearing 
in  a ten-oared  barge  rowed  by  slaves,  some  of 
them  staying  all  winter, — the  Tilghmans,  Holli- 
days, Lloyds,  Pacas,  Haywards,  Blakes,  Browns, 
and  Hindmans.  Baskets  of  fruit  stood  in  the 
hallway,  with  tankards  of  sangaree  and  lemon 
punch,  and  everybody  dressed  for  dinner  in  the 
ruffles  and  gorgeousness  of  the  period. 

After  William  III.  came  to  the  throne  and 
the  Church  of  England  was  established  by  law, 
Roman  Catholicism  was  almost  abolished  in 
Maryland,  and  the  few  Catholics  who  remained 
were  in  a worse  condition  than  ever.  The 
Protestants  were  firmly  settled  in  power,  with 
the  Church  of  England  established  on  the  ruins 
of  the  faith  which  the  Calverts  and  their  fol- 
lowers had  fondly  hoped  would  always  con- 
trol the  colony.  They  were  under  the  dirett 
rule  of  a Protestant  king  who  had  spent  a large 
215 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

part  of  his  life  in  upholding  the  liberties  of 
Holland  against  the  combined  Catholic  armies 
of  Europe.  He  had  just  fought  his  way  to  the 
English  throne  against  the  armies  of  a Catholic 
king,  and  he  was  continually  discovering  and 
suppressing  Catholic  plots  to  dethrone  him. 

The  Catholics  of  Maryland  were  not  the 
subjefts  of  any  European  country  watching 
its  opportunity  to  invade  England  and  turn  it 
Catholic  at  the  point  of  the  sword  ; they  were 
not  the  subjefts  of  the  king  of  France,  who  had 
supplied  Charles  II.  and  James  II.  with  money 
and  assistance  to  suppress  Protestantism.  It  is 
not  probable  that  in  their  depressed  condition 
any  of  them  were  concerned  in  plots  to  dethrone 
William  ; and  certainly  none  of  them  had  been 
concerned  in  the  Spanish  Armada  or  the  Gun- 
powder Plot. 

But  they  were  Catholics;  they  belonged  to  the 
faith  and  were  a part  of  the  people  who  be- 
lieved that  the  British  government  and  all  the 
churches  and  cathedrals  of  England  were  the 
property  of  the  Pope,  and  that  it  was  justifiable 
to  join  the  French  in  an  invasion  of  England  to 
dethrone  any  king  who  was  a Protestant.  The 
difference  between  Protestant  and  Catholic  was 
at  that  time  a political  as  much  as  a religious 
difference.  The  Protestants  were  the  majority 
of  the  people  of  England,  and  the  Catholics  had 
216 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

been  concerned  in  all  the  conspiracies  and  wars 
against  the  nation  which  for  a hundred  years 
and  more  had  inflamed  the  Protestant  mind. 
The  Puritans  and  the  English  churchmen  were 
too  close  to  all  these  events  to  look  upon  them 
calmly  or  tolerantly.  There  were  on  both  sides 
too  many  people  alive  who  had  taken  part  in 
them,  and  they  could  not  believe  that  all  danger 
was  past. 

They  knew  of  the  plots  against  King  Wil- 
liam, they  knew  that  the  dethroned  Catholic 
James  II.  was  in  France,  living  under  the  pro- 
teftion  of  a Catholic  people  and  king,  with 
whom  he  eagerly  watched  for  an  opportunity  to 
invade  England  and  assist  the  English  Catholics 
to  seize  the  government,  and  they  knew  that  on 
the  continent  of  Europe,  wherever  Catholics 
were  in  power,  Protestants  were  persecuted,  tor- 
tured, and  subjected  to  every  indignity  and  mis- 
ery that  vengeance  could  devise.  They  had 
saved  themselves  from  such  things  in  England 
by  force,  and  they  believed  that  force  would  be 
necessary  for  many  years  to  come. 

The  development  of  religious  liberty  had  at 
that  time  reached  a point  where  the  different 
divisions  of  Protestants  were  willing  to  tolerate 
one  another,  although  this  toleration  was  not  the 
free,  absolutely  willing,  and  open  toleration  of 
modern  times.  They  were  willing  also  to  tol- 
217 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

erate  the  Catholics  in  the  sense  of  the  former 
meaning  of  the  word  tolerate  ; that  is  to  say, 
the  Catholics  were  to  be  allowed  to  inhabit  the 
country  without  deprivation  of  life  or  property ; 
but  they  were  not  to  be  allowed  any  share  in  the 
government,  or  to  have  any  influence  in  it  which 
might  be  the  entering  wedge  for  attaining  com- 
plete control ; and  they  must  keep  their  religion 
to  themselves,  not  parade  it  in  public  or  in 
any  way  attempt  to  proselyte  and  add  to  their 
numbers.  If  reduced  to  this  condition,  it  was 
generally  believed  that  in  all  English-speaking 
countries  they  would  be  comparatively  harmless 
and  unable  to  carry  out  the  peculiar  political 
doftrines  which  at  that  time  were  an  essential 
part  of  their  religion. 

It  was  on  this  principle,  which  now,  of  course, 
seems  strange  and  unnecessary,  that  the  Catho- 
lics were  dealt  with  in  all  the  colonies,  where 
they  were  very  few  in  numbers,  compelled  to 
be  very  quiet  and  unobtrusive  in  their  opinions, 
and  usually  condufted  their  religious  services  in 
private  houses.  Any  priests  among  them  were 
obliged  to  be  as  inconspicuous  as  possible,  and 
both  priests  and  laity  were  universally  regarded 
as  belonging  to  the  most  bitter  and  dangerous 
political  enemies  of  England,  who  for  humanity’s 
sake  were  permitted  to  live  in  the  community 
and  enjoy  the  ordinary  rights  of  person  and 
218 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

property  only  on  condition  that  they  kept  them- 
selves in  the  background. 

Where  religious  liberty  was  established  by 
law  in  colonial  times,  it  usually  meant  liberty 
only  for  Protestants,  and  Catholics  were  either 
expressly  or  impliedly  excluded  from  its  pro- 
visions. In  the  commission  for  New  Hamp- 
shire of  1680  we  find  “that  liberty  of  con- 
science shall  be  allowed  to  all  Protestants.” 
The  Massachusetts  charter  of  1691,  granted  by 
William  III.,  says,  “ there  shall  be  liberty  of 
conscience  allowed  in  the  worship  of  God  to 
all  Christians  (except  papists)  inhabiting  or 
which  shall  inhabit  or  be  resident  within  our 
said  province  or  territory and  Oglethorpe’s 
Georgia  charter  of  1732  says,  “all  such  persons, 
except  papists,  shall  have  a free  exercise  of 
religion.” 

In  the  Rhode  Island  charter  of  1663,  in  the 
constitutions  framed  by  the  proprietors  of  New 
Jersey,  and  in  the  constitutions  framed  by  Penn 
for  the  government  of  Pennsylvania,  religious 
liberty  is  given  generally,  without  any  exclusion 
of  Catholics.  In  these  instances  there  may  pos- 
sibly have  been  an  intention  to  allow  religious 
liberty  in  the  modern  sense  of  the  term.  Roger 
Williams  and  his  followers,  who  founded  Rhode 
Island,  were  adherents  of  obscure  sefts  far  in 
advance  of  their  time,  who  seem  to  have  been 
219 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

entirely  sincere  in  their  notions  of  liberty, 
although  they  were  never  put  to  the  severe  test 
of  contending  for  political  power  with  a rival 
se6f,  and  there  were  few  if  any  Roman  Catho- 
lics in  their  colony.  Pennsylvania  and  New 
Jersey  were  largely  under  the  influence  of  the 
Quakers,  in  whose  faith  absolute  freedom  of 
religion  was  a cardinal  principle. 

But  even  in  those  colonies  where  there  was 
no  precise  law  on  the  subjeft,  or  where  the  law 
was  broad  enough  to  include  Catholics,  the  force 
of  general  public  opinion,  and  the  strong  con- 
viction in  all  Protestant  minds  that  the  political  ' 
integrity  of  England  was  inconsistent  with  Cath- 
olic power,  was  sufficient  to  make  the  treatment 
of  Catholics  the  same  as  it  was  in  colonies  where 
the  laws  were  expressly  against  them. 

In  Pennsylvania,  where  complete  religious 
liberty  was  supposed  to  be  allowed  by  law  to 
every  form  of  Christianity,  and  where  the  founder 
of  the  province  and  the  people  were  more  than 
usually  liberal  in  their  views,  we  find  that  the 
Catholics  were  obliged  to  keep  very  much  to 
themselves.  In  1708,  Penn  writes  to  his  secre- 
tary of  the  colony,  James  Logan,  “ there  is  a 
complaint  against  your  government  that  you 
suffer  public  mass  in  a scandalous  manner  and 
again,  “ it  has  become  a reproach  to  me  here 
with  the  officers  of  the  crown,  that  you  have 


220 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

suffered  the  scandal  of  mass  to  be  publicly  cele- 
brated.” 

It  is  to  be  observed  that  what  Penn  complains 
of  is  “public  mass”  and  mass  “ publicly  cele- 
brated.” He  was  willing  that  the  Catholics 
should  have  it  in  their  private  houses,  but  the 
open  celebration  of  it  was  an  offence  against  the 
feeling  of  the  time. 

We  read  in  Watson’s  “Annals”  that  in  1736 
the  people  of  Philadelphia  opposed  the  building 
of  a papal  chapel  because  it  was  to  be  erefted  in 
too  public  a place  ; and  another  Catholic  chapel, 
which  is  said  to  have  been  in  existence  about 
the  same  time  a little  north  of  Philadelphia, 
is  described  as  being  part  of  a private  house, 
which  enabled  the  worshippers  to  resort  to  it 
without  inconvenience. 

The  priests  commonly  went  about  in  disguise 
because  they  were  at  any  time  likely  to  suffer 
indignities  from  the  masses  of  the  people,  whose 
instinftive  dislike  for  them  was  very  strong.  A 
Jesuit  who  went  from  Maryland  to  Philadelphia 
in  1730  to  see  a Catholic  lady  of  some  impor- 
tance found  her  disguised  in  the  dress  of  a 
Quakeress,  and  made  himself  known  to  her  only 
after  cautious  approaches.* 


* De  Courcy’s  “ Catholic  Church  in  the  United  States” 
(translated  by  Shea),  pp.  209,  210. 


221 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

Even  as  late  as  the  Revolution  and  for  some 
time  afterwards,  when  the  States  were  making 
new  constitutions  for  themselves,  we  find  the 
same  general  opinion  prevailing.  The  consti- 
tutions of  this  period  did  not  expressly  except 
Catholics  from  the  protection  of  religious  liberty, 
but  many  of  them  expressly  excluded  Catholics 
from  public  office;  and  the  constitution  of  Ver- 
mont of  1 777  provided  that  no  Protestant  should 
on  account  of  his  religion  be  deprived  of  any 
civil  right,  which  would  seem  to  imply  that  a 
Catholic  could  be  so  deprived.* 

The  Protestant  government  of  Maryland 
under  William  III.  proceeded  to  reduce  the 
Catholics  of  the  province  to  precisely  the  same 
condition  which  they  occupied  in  the  other 
colonies,  and  continued  to  occupy  for  the  next 
century,  until  with  the  waning  temporal  power 
of  the  Pope  and  the  change  in  some  of  the  more 
violent  of  their  opinions  the  fear  of  their  polit- 
ical designs  gradually  wore  away. 

The  benefit  of  religious  liberty  was  allowed 
only  to  Protestants  in  Maryland,  and  the  Catholic 
priests  were  striftly  prohibited  from  proselyting, 
and  from  making  any  public  or  conspicuous  dis- 
play of  their  religion.  In  one  instance,  when 
there  was  an  epidemic  in  the  province,  the  as- 


* “ Evolution  of  the  Constitution,”  p.  190. 


222 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

sembly  complained  that  the  priests  took  advan- 
tage of  it  “to  go  up  and  down  the  country,  to 
persons’  houses  when  dying  and  frantic,  and  en- 
deavor to  seduce  and  make  proselytes  of  them 
and,  in  the  absence  of  a law  on  the  subjeft,  they 
asked  the  governor  to  restrain  them  by  procla- 
mation. 

On  another  occasion  the  upper  house  of  the 
legislature  calls  the  attention  of  the  governor  to 
William  Hunter,  a priest,  who  had  been  very 
aftive  in  proselyting,  and  leaves  it  to  the  gov- 
ernor to  decide  whether  he  should  be  “wholly 
silenced,  and  not  suffered  to  preach  or  say  mass 
in  any  part  of  this  province.”  In  1704  there 
was  a complaint  that  mass  was  celebrated  in 
the  Popish  chapel  at  St.  Mary’s  when  the 
County  Court  was  holding  its  sessions  there. 
For  this  too  public  exhibition  of  the  Roman 
religion  the  chapel  was  ordered  to  be  closed  by 
the  sheriff,  and  the  priests  were  informed  by 
the  governor,  “You  might,  methinks,  be  con- 
tent to  live  quietly  as  you  may,  and  let  the  ex- 
ercise of  your  superstitious  vanities  be  confined 
to  yourselves,  without  proclaiming  them  at 
public  times  and  in  public  places,” — a sentence 
which  shows  in  brief  the  main  principle  which 
controlled  the  treatment  of  the  Catholics  in  all 
the  colonies. 

In  the  year  1700,  many  conspiracies  to  de- 
223 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

throne  William  III.  having  been  discovered,  a 
severe  statute  was  passed  by  Parliament,  called 
“ An  aft  for  the  further  preventing  the  growth 
of  popery.”  By  this  law  a reward  was  offered 
to  any  one  who  should  secure  the  conviftion  of 
a priest  for  exercising  any  funftion  of  his  office 
or  for  saying  mass,  and  the  punishment  on 
conviftion  was  perpetual  imprisonment.  Any 
Catholic  who  kept  a school  or  educated  or 
boarded  young  people  was  to  receive  like  pun- 
ishment. Those  who  refused  to  take  the  oath 
of  allegiance  and  supremacy  could  not  inherit 
land.  No  professed  Catholic  could  purchase 
land ; and  to  prevent  Protestant  children  of 
Catholic  parents  from  being  compelled  to  em- 
brace the  Catholic  religion  for  want  of  suitable 
support,  the  Keeper  of  the  Great  Seal  could  take 
charge  of  such  children  as  were  not  given  sup- 
port by  their  parents,  and  make  order  for  their 
proper  maintenance.  This  legislation  was  re- 
enafted  in  Maryland  with  some  modifications, 
and  those  who  refused  to  take  the  oath  of  alle- 
giance and  supremacy  were  not  allowed  to  vote 
for  delegates  to  the  assembly. 

It  does  not  appear  to  have  been  always 
necessary  to  enforce  all  of  this  legislation.  The 
ordinary  policy  which  has  already  been  de- 
scribed was  sufficient  to  keep  the  few  Catholics 
in  Maryland  within  bounds,  as  in  the  other 
224 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

colonies,  and  the  severe  laws  were  held  in 
reserve,  to  be  let  loose,  as  one  of  the  governors 
said,  to  crash  them  if  occasion  should  ever 
require  it. 

This  plain  statement  of  the  aftual  condition 
of  things  in  colonial  times  seems  to  be  necessary 
because  the  fafts  have  been  distorted  by  Protes- 
tant writers  on  one  side  and  by  Catholic  on  the 
other.  The  severity  of  the  repression  not  only 
in  Maryland,  but  in  England  and  all  the  colonies, 
has  often  been  assailed  as  unnecessary  and  cruel 
bigotry,  and  no  doubt  it  was  often  carried  too 
far  when  public  officials  afted  under  the  influence 
of  excitement  and  yielded  to  popular  clamor. 
Queen  Elizabeth  was  as  unjustified  in  slaughter- 
ing Catholics  as  Bloody  Mary  in  slaughtering 
Protestants,  and  these  excesses  of  Protestant 
rulers  often  injured  their  cause  by  producing 
reaftions  in  favor  of  the  Catholics.  But  we 
must  not  judge  the  situation  exclusively  by 
modern  standards.  We  must  put  ourselves  in 
the  place  of  the  men  of  that  time,  and  under- 
stand their  difficulties  and  the  problems  with 
which  they  were  dealing. 

If  it  had  been  merely  a question  of  religion, 
the  repression,  even  in  the  mildest  form,  would 
have  been  both  bigoted  and  unnecessary.  But 
there  was  a great  deal  besides  religion  at  stake. 
The  whole  political  fabric  of  England  and  the 
Vol.  ii— 15.  225 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

principles  of  liberty  and  free  government  of  the 
Anglo-Saxon  race  were  assailed.  Catholic  and 
Protestant  did  not  then  stand,  as  now,  for  a mere 
difference  in  religious  doftrine.  They  stood  for 
two  different  and  absolutely  inconsistent  political 
theories  which  neither  side  would  surrender. 

The  Roman  Catholic  Church  of  that  time, 
although  it  contained,  as  always,  many  good  and 
learned  men,  was  unequivocally  allied  with  des- 
potism, and  supported  despotism  in  every  coun- 
try of  Europe.  It  had  not  then  accepted  and  it 
would  not  accept  the  new  ideas  of  free  govern- 
ment which  were  springing  up  everywhere,  espe- 
cially in  England.  Whenever  it  secured  a king 
of  England  or  gained  influence  over  one,  he  be- 
came a despot,  like  the  Catholic  James  II.,  who 
declared  that  he  had  power  to  annul  or  dispense 
with  the  laws  whenever  he  pleased.  If  the 
Spanish  Armada  or  any  of  the  other  Catholic 
designs  against  England  had  met  with  perma- 
nent success,  there  is  no  question  that  England 
would  have  become  a despotism  like  France, 
which  could  have  been  broken  only  by  the  hor- 
rors of  a French  Revolution. 

England  escaped  such  a revolution  only  be- 
cause in  the  previous  two  hundred  years  she 
had  succeeded  in  fighting  off  the  attempt  of  the 
Catholics  to  control  her  government  and  give 
despotism  the  sanftion  of  religion.  During 
226 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

those  two  hundred  years  the  colonies  in  Amer- 
ica were  founded  exclusively  by  Protestants, 
except  in  the  single  instance  of  Maryland, 
which  became  a completely  Protestant  govern- 
ment within  sixty  years.  These  Protestant  col- 
onists brought  with  them  the  principles  of 
Anglo-Saxon  freedom  untainted  by  the  in- 
fluences from  continental  Europe  which  were 
attempting  to  smother  them  in  England.  The 
colonists  represented  the  original  Anglo-Saxon 
principles  of  liberty  more  thoroughly  and  com- 
pletely than  the  mother  country,  and  they  and 
their  descendants  preserved  them  in  that  original 
purity  which  has  created  all  that  is  valuable  in  the 
American  Revolution  and  the  Constitution. 

But  if  in  that  two  hundred  years  the  British 
government  had  been  controlled  by  Roman  in- 
fluence, the  colonies  would  all  have  been  turned 
into  little  despotisms,  as  James  II.  had  started  to 
turn  them  just  before  he  was  dethroned,  our 
history  would  have  been  reversed,  and  our  Revo- 
lution would  have  been  another  French  Revo- 
lution. 

We  must  remember  also  that  under  all  the 
severely  repressive  laws  the  Catholics  were 
always  given  ample  opportunity  to  renounce 
their  political  doftrines  as  distindl  from  their 
religious  doftrines.  When  they  wanted  to  vote, 
or  take  part  in  government,  or  hold  public  office, 
227 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

they  were  offered  an  oath  to  the  effeft  that  they 
admitted  the  king  then  on  the  throne  to  be  the 
lawful  king  of  England,  to  whom  they  owed 
allegiance,  and  that  they  denied  the  authority  of 
the  Pope,  or  of  any  power  outside  of  Great 
Britain,  to  dethrone  him  and  absolve  his  subje&s 
from  their  allegiance.  But  they  would  not  take 
this  oath,  and  openly  put  themselves  in  the 
position  of  rebels  against  the  government  under 
which  they  were  living,  and  showed  the  sincer- 
ity of  their  opinions  by  joining  in  every  con- 
spiracy and  attempt  against  the  government.  It 
is  not  at  all  surprising  that  they  were  taken  at 
their  word  and  treated  as  a dangerous  class. 

In  modern  times  most  Roman  Catholics,  or 
at  least  most  English-speaking  Roman  Catholics, 
have  praftically  abandoned  their  former  doc- 
trines of  the  authority  of  their  Pope  and  church 
in  political  affairs,  and  as  a consequence  they  are 
given  the  most  complete  political  and  religious 
liberty  in  all  Protestant  communities,  a liberty 
which  they  might  have  had  two  or  three  cen- 
turies sooner  if  they  had  apprehended  that 
religion  and  politics  are  not  necessarily  con- 
nected. 

The  only  instances  in  which  the  freedom  of 
Catholics  has  been  disturbed  in  Protestant  com- 
munities in  modern  times  have  been  when  a 
mistaken  zeal  on  their  part  has  aroused  the 
228 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

people’s  suspicion  that  they  still  in  secret 
nourished  their  ancient  political  doftrines  and 
were  watching  an  opportunity  to  carry  them 
into  effeft.  But  every  day  that  passes  lessens 
the  probability  of  such  outbreaks  for  the  future, 
and  in  the  United  States,  when  the  Roman 
Church  has  acquired  a native  instead  of  a foreign 
priesthood,  such  difficulties  will  be  impossible. 

In  1708  the  sheriffs  of  every  county  in  Mary- 
land made  a careful  enumeration  of  the  Catholics, 
and  returned  two  thousand  nine  hundred  and 
seventy-four,  of  whom  nearly  half  were  to  be 
found  in  St.  Mary’s  County,  where  the  original 
settlement  had  been  made.  As  the  total  popu- 
lation was  at  that  time  about  forty  thousand,  the 
Catholics  were  less  than  a tenth  of  the  whole. 
They  had  not  increased  in  proportion  to  the 
rest  of  the  people,  for  thirty-five  years  pre- 
viously Lord  Baltimore  had  reported  them  as 
numbering  one-fourth. 

The  Church  of  England  people,  however, 
who  at  first  had  been  very  insignificant  in  num- 
bers, steadily  increased,  and  their  faith  remained 
established  by  law  until  after  the  Revolution. 
They  could  not  at  first  secure  the  absolute  con- 
trol they  had  in  Virginia,  for  the  Puritans  were 
too  numerous  and  had  taken  too  important  a 
part  in  the  history  of  the  colony  ; but  the 
churchmen  increased  so  rapidly  that  long  before 
229 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

the  Revolution  they  composed,  it  is  said,  two- 
thirds  of  the  people. 

The  churches,  as  in  Virginia,  were  usually 
built  of  brick.  The  pulpit  was  high  above  the 
congregation,  with  a great  sounding-board  like  a 
candle  extinguisher  hung  above  from  the  ceiling. 
The  pews  were  square  boxes  with  partitions 
often  seven  or  eight  feet  high,  furnished  accord- 
ing to  the  owner’s  taste,  and  owned  like  land, 
descending  to  heirs  and  transferred  by  will. 
When  the  floor  was  covered  with  pews,  hanging 
pews  were  built  against  the  walls  on  a level 
with  the  high  pulpit. 

The  Maryland  clergy  are  said  to  have  been 
more  vicious  and  corrupt  than  those  of  Vir- 
ginia. They  were  appointed  to  their  livings  by 
Lord  Baltimore,  and,  once  appointed,  it  was 
almost  impossible  to  remove  them,  no  matter 
what  their  conduit.  There  were  thirty-six 
parishes  in  the  province,  and  the  livings  averaged 
two  hundred  pounds  a year,  which  was  a good 
income  at  that  time,  and  few  clergymen  in  the 
country  could  live  so  comfortably. 

They  were  secure  in  their  houses  and  glebes, 
with  their  incomes  collefted  from  taxes  by  the 
sheriff,  and  they  set  decency  at  defiance,  it  is 
said.  They  raced  horses,  hunted  foxes,  drank, 
gambled,  joined  in  every  amusement  and  gayety 
of  the  planters,  and  would  extort  marriage  fees 
230 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

from  the  poor  by  breaking  off  in  the  middle  of 
the  service  and  refusing  to  go  on  until  they 
were  paid. 

But  in  the  midst  of  all  this  abuse  we  find 
that  nearly  all  the  good  schools  in  the  province 
were  conducted  by  them, — the  Garrison  Forest 
School  in  Baltimore  County,  King  William’s 
School,  Rev.  Thomas  Bordley’s  School  in  Cecil 
County,  and  the  school  at  Chestertown.  Parson 
Bacon,  although  for  his  accomplishments  as  a 
fiddler  he  was  elefted  a member  of  the  Annapolis 
Tuesday  Club,  was  also  a learned  man,  and  com- 
piled the  valuable  volume  of  the  laws  of  Mary- 
land. They  were  not  quite  so  black  as  they  have 
been  painted,  and  a few  notoriously  bad  ones 
affefted  the  reputation  of  all.  They  lived  under 
an  evil  system.  There  was  no  bishop  or  super- 
intending head  to  control  them,  and  the  difficulty 
of  punishing  any  of  them  by  removal  rendered 
the  reckless  ones  open  and  defiant  in  their  vices. 

The  detestable  praftice  of  sending  convifted 
criminals  to  the  colonies  was  indulged  in  by  the 
British  government  to  an  unusual  extent  in  the 
case  of  Maryland.  In  faft,  the  plain  truth  of 
the  matter  is  that  Maryland  was  made  a penal 
colony,  and  was  the  only  province  into  which 
convifts  could  be  freely  imported.  To  Virginia, 
as  we  have  seen,  comparatively  few  came;  the 
people  would  not  allow  the  praftice  to  go  on, 

231 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

and  inflifted  severe  penalties  on  captains  who 
brought  them.  But  after  the  year  1750  Mary- 
land was  compelled  to  see  English  criminals 
turned  loose  among  her  people  at  the  rate  of 
four  or  five  hundred  a year;  and  it  has  been  esti- 
mated that  up  to  the  Revolution  she  had  received 
at  least  twenty  thousand  of  these  social  pests, 
who  were  a severe  injury  to  the  general  char- 
after  of  her  people  and  interfered  not  a little 
with  her  advancement. 

The  Marylanders  protested  and  resisted  in 
vain.  An  aft  was  passed  prohibiting  their  im- 
portation, and  when  annulled  by  the  crown  was 
passed  again  and  again,  until  finally  the  legisla- 
ture fell  back  on  that  curious  clause  in  the 
charter  which  allowed  the  colony  to  levy  duties 
on  goods  imported  from  Great  Britain  ; and  as 
the  convifts  were  sold  like  indented  servants,  a 
tax  was  imposed  on  them  as  imported  merchan- 
dise. But  the  law  was  of  course  promptly  sup- 
pressed by  the  home  government,  without  regard 
to  the  charter,  and  the  process  of  making  Mary- 
land a penal  colony  continued. 

In  this  enormous  importation  of  a low  class, 
and  in  the  presence  of  Spaniards,  Italians,  Dutch, 
Germans,  and  Bohemians  who  came  to  the 
province  as  adventurers,  we  find  a reason  for 
the  failure  of  Maryland  to  attain  a position  of 
leadership  and  distinftion  like  Virginia.  The 
232 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

climate  was  said  to  be  better  than  that  of  Vir- 
ginia, tobacco-raising  and  plantation  life  very 
much  the  same,  prosperity  and  wealth  as  quickly 
attained,  and  living  was  so  easy  that  the  Mary- 
landers are  described  as  larger  and  stronger 
than  the  Virginians.  But  no  very  remarkable 
men  were  produced,  and  the  Maryland  aristoc- 
racy was  distinctly  inferior  in  ability  and  accom- 
plishments to  the  same  class  in  Virginia. 

The  Spaniards,  Italians,  and  other  aliens  were 
comparatively  few.  The  majority  of  the  peo- 
ple were  English.  But  when  to  this  alien  ele- 
ment were  added  twenty  thousand  criminals, 
some  of  whom  were  aCtually  employed  as 
school-teachers,  it  is  easy  to  see  the  degener- 
ating influence  which  pervaded  the  masses  of 
the  people,  on  whom,  in  the  end,  the  character 
of  a community  always  depends. 

Scharf,  in  his  “ History  of  Maryland,”  tells  us 
that  the  manners  and  morals  of  the  province  were 
decidedly  bad  ; and  although  this  is  perhaps  too 
strong  a statement,  such  a condition  was  natu- 
rally to  be  expeCted  from  the  character  of  the 
population.  Politics  were  corrupt  and  bribery 
common.  Maryland  and  New  York  suffered 
more  from  this  evil  in  colonial  times  than  the 
other  colonies,  which  were  comparatively  free 
from  it.  The  Marylanders  also  showed  a lack 
of  intelligence  in  their  political  affairs,  and  in- 
233 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

jured  themselves  by  imposing  absurd  duties  on 
exports. 

To  complete  the  demoralization,  treats  were 
given  by  the  government  to  the  people  on  great 
occasions,  like  Washington’s  visit  to  Annapolis 
or  a governor’s  visit  to  Baltimore.  When  the 
treaty  of  peace  which  closed  the  Revolution  was 
signed,  the  State  bought  a hogshead  of  rum, 
forty-nine  gallons  of  claret,  thirty-two  of  Ma- 
deira, thirty-five  of  port,  six  of  spirits,  one 
hundred  and  seventy-six  pounds  of  bacon,  one 
hundred  and  twenty-six  pounds  of  mutton,  two 
hundred  and  seventy-two  of  veal,  besides  beef, 
lamb,  fowls,  loaf-sugar,  bread,  playing-cards, 
and  candles,  for  a grand  carouse  of  the  mob. 
To  celebrate  the  birth  of  the  Dauphin  of  France, 
four  hundred  and  eighteen  pounds  were  spent  in 
a similar  way. 

If  the  aristocracy  had  been  composed  of  se- 
lected and  unusual  men,  like  the  Virginia  Cava- 
liers, they  might  have  risen  superior,  for  a time, 
to  the  masses.  But  very  few  people  of  this  Vir- 
ginia class  came  to  Maryland.  The  Catholics, 
although  in  the  first  migration  comprising  not 
a few  people  of  more  than  ordinary  education, 
were  not,  as  a class,  of  the  high-strung  Virginia 
order,  and  the  Puritans  were  not  of  the  keen, 
aggressive  sort  who  settled  New  England. 

The  Maryland  aristocracy  indulged  in  the 
234 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

sports  and  amusements  and  a great  deal  of  the 
whole-souled  out-door  life  of  the  Virginians, 
but  they  failed  to  combine  with  these  the  Vir- 
ginians’ love  of  knowledge,  books,  and  discus- 
sion. They  had  no  college  like  the  Virginians, 
and  no  ambition  for  one,  and  this  difference  is 
at  once  suggestive. 

The  negroes  were  concerned  in  one  slight 
rebellion,  which  was  not  like  the  usual  slave 
rebellion,  for  they  joined  themselves  to  a dis- 
reputable party  of  white  men,  mostly  of  the 
insolvent  class,  whose  objefl  was  to  seize  the 
government  and  force  a general  discharge  of  all 
debts  and  obligations. 

The  frequent  rebellions  in  Maryland  had 
naturally  given  the  impression  that  the  govern- 
ment could  be  seized  to  carry  out  any  pet  pur- 
pose of  a clique  or  party  ; and  this  feeling  was 
another  injury  to  the  province.  There  never 
seems  to  have  been  a time  when  there  were  not 
several  restless,  discontented  spirits,  who,  having 
enjoyed  the  excitement  and  publicity  of  some  of 
the  Puritan  rebellions,  were  on  the  watch  for 
another  opportunity.  Coode  was  fond  of  boast- 
ing “ that  as  he  had  pulled  down  one  govern- 
ment, he  would  pull  down  another.” 

In  17 1 1 Charles  Calvert  made  a last  attempt 
to  regain  the  government  of  Maryland,  but  was 
distinctly  told  that  it  could  not  be  restored  to 
235 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

any  one  of  his  religious  belief ; and  soon  after,  in 
1714,  he  died,  at  the  age  of  eighty-five,  leaving 
his  title  and  rights  in  the  province  to  his  son, 
Benedict  Leonard  Calvert. 

While  his  father  was  still  alive,  Benedict  had 
become  a Protestant  and  joined  the  Church  of 
England, — an  aft  of  policy  rather  than  of  con- 
viction, as  most  of  the  historians  have  assumed  ; 
but  there  is  no  evidence  by  which  we  can  thor- 
oughly test  the  young  man’s  sincerity.  During 
his  father’s  lifetime  he  suffered  for  his  change  of 
religion,  lost  an  annual  income  of  four  hundred 
and  fifty  pounds  which  his  father  had  given  him, 
and  was  compelled  to  support  his  wife  and  six 
children  on  his  marriage  settlement  of  six  hun- 
dred pounds  a year. 

Queen  Anne,  however,  in  consideration  of 
the  hard  usage  he  had  received  from  his  father, 
gave  him  a pension  of  three  hundred  pounds  a 
year,  which  was  to  continue  only  while  his 
father  lived  ; and  she  also,  at  Benedict’s  sugges- 
tion, appointed  as  governor  of  Maryland  a cer- 
tain Captain  John  Hart,  who  agreed  to  give 
Benedict  five  hundred  pounds  a year  out  of  the 
perquisites  of  the  office.  George  I.,  on  ascend- 
ing the  throne  a few  months  before  the  death  of 
Charles  Calvert,  renewed  the  arrangement  with 
Benedict  which  Queen  Anne  had  made,  and  re- 
appointed Captain  Hart  on  the  same  condition. 

236 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

As  soon  as  his  father  was  dead,  Benedict  ex- 
pected that  the  government  would  be  restored, 
and  he  undoubtedly  would  soon  have  received 
it ; but  he  died  only  a little  more  than  a year 
after  his  father.  His  eldest  son,  Charles,  now 
the  fifth  Lord  Baltimore,  being  under  age,  his 
guardian.  Lord  Guilford,  petitioned  for  the  res- 
toration, and  it  was  granted. 

The  last  thread  which  had  connected  Mary- 
land with  Catholicism  was  now  broken.  It  was 
a Protestant  colony,  with  a Protestant  church 
established  by  law,  and  under  a Protestant  pro- 
prietor. The  earnest  efforts  of  George  Calvert 
and  his  son  Cecil  to  build  up  a Catholic  colony 
on  the  Chesapeake  had  not  only  failed,  but  had 
resulted  in  the  establishment  of  an  extreme 
Protestant  colony,  where  Catholics  were  most 
severely  repressed. 

Almost  immediately  after  the  restoration  of 
the  colony  to  the  Calvert  family,  one  of  those 
events  occurred  which  showed  the  political 
opinions  of  the  Catholics  and  the  reason  for  the 
laws  which  repressed  them.  When  the  resto- 
ration was  announced  in  Maryland,  a number 
of  them  declared  in  favor  of  the  pretender  to 
the  English  throne,  and  used  the  guns  of  the 
government  fort  to  fire  a salute  in  his  honor  ; 
the  consequence  of  which  was  that  the  laws 
already  in  existence  were  more  rigorously 
237 


en- 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

forced  and  new  ones  passed  increasing  their  dis- 
abilities. 

Catholic  writers  have  bitterly  complained  of 
these  measures  as  a violation  of  the  principles  of 
religious  liberty.  But  it  is  difficult  to  see  that 
there  was  really  any  question  of  religion  in- 
volved. If  the  Maryland  Catholics  chose 
openly  to  espouse  the  cause  of  a man  who  was 
watching  his  chance  in  a foreign  country  to  in- 
vade England  and  overthrow  the  government, 
they  were  engaging,  so  far  as  lay  in  their  power, 
in  a rebellion  against  Great  Britain.  If  their 
treatment  was  in  any  sense  too  severe,  it  was 
political,  not  religious,  persecution.  The  Mary- 
land assembly  described  them  as  people  who 
had  “ openly,  in  treasonable  manner,  taken  upon 
them  to  give  the  pretended  Prince  of  Wales  the 
title  of  King  of  Great  Britain,  and  drunk  his 
health  as  such.” 

The  change  from  proprietary  to  royal  govern- 
ment in  1691  had  not  interfered  with  the  ad- 
vancement of  Maryland,  but,  on  the  contrary, 
the  tranquillity  of  the  Protestant  rule  seems  to 
have  increased  both  the  productiveness  and  the 
population  of  the  colony.  The  population  more 
than  doubled  in  those  twenty-five  years  ; and  on 
the  restoration,  in  1715,  young  Charles  Calvert 
received  a province  containing  fifty  thousand 
people,  exporting  every  year  thirty  thousand 
238 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

hogsheads  of  tobacco,  which  required  for  its 
transportation  one  hundred  ships  and  sixteen 
hundred  sailors.  Only  two  other  colonies,  Vir- 
ginia and  Massachusetts,  surpassed  Maryland  in 
population  at  that  time,  and  Virginia  alone  ex- 
celled her  in  the  importance  of  her  trade  and 
the  revenues  derived  from  taxes  on  it  by  the 
British  government. 

This  prosperity  continued  after  the  restora- 
tion of  the  Calverts,  and  the  religious  question 
having  been  decisively  and  finally  settled,  the 
political  history  of  Maryland  ceases  to  be  of 
interest  until  the  Revolution.  Other  colonies, 
however,  were  growing  rapidly,  and  by  the 
middle  of  the  eighteenth  century,  Pennsylvania, 
New  York,  and  Connefticut  had  caught  up  to 
Maryland  and  surpassed  her. 

The  Calverts  as  Protestants  proved  themselves 
to  be  the  same  discreet,  moderate  rulers  they  had 
been  as  Catholics.  The  family  seem,  indeed,  to 
have  been  well  endowed  with  the  faculty  of 
governing,  and,  even  when  degenerated  from  the 
eminence  of  Cecil  Calvert,  were  very  successful 
in  satisfying  their  people  and  in  obtaining  money 
returns  from  quit-rents,  taxes,  forfeitures,  ap- 
pointments to  offices,  and  presentations  to  liv- 
ings, which  are  said  to  have  equalled  twelve 
thousand  pounds  a year,  and  their  loss  sustained 
by  the  confiscation  of  all  their  property  in  the 
239 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

Revolution  was  estimated  at  four  hundred  thou- 
sand pounds. 

The  steady  decline  of  the  family  in  charafter 
and  ability  is  strikingly  shown  in  their  portraits, 
from  Cecil’s  handsome,  strong  face  down  to  the 
weak,  inferior  countenance  of  Frederick,  the 
sixth  Lord  Baltimore,  with  whose  death,  in 
1771,  the  family  became  extinft. 

Frederick,  whose  conduft  and  charafter  were 
what  might  have  been  expefted  from  his  por- 
trait, left  an  illegitimate  son,  Henry  Harford, 
who  claimed  Maryland,  under  his  father’s  will, 
against  Louisa  Browning,  who  claimed  under 
the  will  of  her  father,  Charles  Calvert,  the  fifth 
Lord  Baltimore  ; and  before  the  litigation 
between  these  two  could  be  decided,  the  Revolu- 
tion deprived  both  of  them  of  the  province. 

The  Catholic  question  soon  settled  itself  in 
Maryland,  and  became  a mere  difference  of 
opinion  between  individuals,  instead  of  a contest 
for  political  ascendency.  General  public  feeling 
and  agreement  controlled  the  subjeft.  It  was 
seldom  necessary  to  enforce  the  laws,  for  the 
Catholics  quietly  accepted  the  conditions  im- 
posed upon  them,  and  seem  to  have  been  treated 
with  even  more  forbearance  than  in  the  other 
colonies.  “ Their  priests,”  said  Governor  Sharpe 
in  1756,  “ have  large  trafts  of  land  amongst  us, 
and  their  children  are  frequently  sent  to  St. 

240 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

Omer’s  for  education.  These  are,  in  my  opinion, 
great  indulgences,  and  such  as  are  allowed  in 
none  of  the  colonies  but  Maryland  and  Pennsyl- 
vania.” 

At  the  time  of  the  French  and  Indian  wars, 
when  the  French  threatened  the  complete  de- 
struction of  the  English  colonies,  all  Catholics 
were  strongly  suspeCted,  especially  those  in 
Maryland,  of  sympathy  for  France  ; and  it  is 
said  that  some  of  the  Maryland  Catholics  openly 
rejoiced  at  Braddock’s  defeat. 

The  Protestant  portion  of  the  people  was 
much  aroused,  and  became  still  more  uneasy 
when  nine  hundred  of  the  French  Acadians 
from  Nova  Scotia  were  landed  in  the  colony. 
The  assembly  urged  the  governor  to  command 
the  magistrates  to  execute  the  penal  statutes 
with  greater  strictness.  Nothing  severe  was 
done,  however,  and  there  is  no  evidence  that 
any  of  the  Catholics  actually  intended  to  assist 
the  French,  although  some  of  the  over-zealous 
may  have  expressed  indiscreet  opinions. 

But  many  of  the  people  were  in  favor  of  very 
radical  measures,  and  those  of  Prince  George 
County  instructed  their  delegates  to  dispossess 
the  Jesuits  of  their  landed  estates,  exclude 
papists  from  places  of  trust  and  profit,  and  pre- 
vent them  sending  their  children  to  foreign 
popish  seminaries  for  education,  where  their 
Vol.  II. — 16  241 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

minds  were  alienated  from  allegiance  to  the 
British  government. 

Living  in  an  overwhelmingly  Protestant  com- 
munity of  Englishmen,  the  Maryland  Catholics, 
being  also  Englishmen,  gradually  adopted  a 
peculiar  type  of  moderate  Catholicism,  free 
from  the  extreme  claims  of  ultramontanism. 
There  seems  to  have  been  but  little  about  them 
that  was  inconsistent  with  the  American  repub- 
licanism which  prevailed  after  the  Revolution; 
and  if  they  had  remained  the  controlling  in- 
fluence, it  is  not  likely  that  we  should  ever  have 
had  the  public-school  controversy  or  the  Native 
American  riots  of  1844.  But  the  enormous 
immigration  of  Irish  ultramontanes  after  the 
year  1825  completely  changed  the  charafter  of 
the  Roman  Church  in  this  country. 

The  original  settlement  in  the  extreme  south- 
ern portion  of  the  colony  at  St.  Mary’s  had  not 
been  in  the  most  produftive  part  or  the  part 
most  convenient  for  commerce,  and  the  centre 
of  population  and  trade  kept  moving  northward, 
first  to  Annapolis,  and  finally  to  Baltimore.  But 
Baltimore  was  of  comparatively  little  importance 
until  the  Revolution. 

Some  of  the  attempts  at  artificial  town  making 
were  more  or  less  successful,  until,  after  several 
experiments,  the  present  site  of  Baltimore,  on 
the  Patapsco,  was  found.  The  first  attempt 
242 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

was  in  1683,  when  a town  was  ordered  to  be 
laid  out  on  the  Bush  River,  and  as  a result  of 
this,  a small  village  or  settlement  seems  to  have 
existed  for  some  time  on  the  left  bank  of  the 
Bush,  near  the  bridge  of  the  Pennsylvania  Rail- 
road between  Baltimore  and  Philadelphia,  and 
this  village  was  called  Baltimore. 

In  1706,  when  the  forty-two  towns  were  en- 
abled into  existence,  three  of  them  were  in 
Baltimore  County,  one  on  the  Patapsco,  near  the 
present  site  of  Baltimore,  one  on  the  Bush,  near 
Old  Baltimore,  as  it  was  called,  and  the  third  on 
the  Gunpowder,  which  is  the  next  river  south 
of  the  Bush.  Of  these  only  the  one  on  the  Gun- 
powder prospered,  and  was  called  Joppa.  It 
had  a court-house  and  prison,  extensive  wharves 
where  vessels  loaded  for  England  and  the  West 
Indies,  and  the  tobacco  hogsheads  were  trundled 
down  from  the  interior  on  the  rolling  roads. 

Old  Baltimore,  on  the  Bush,  was  completely 
eclipsed  by  the  vigorous  rivalry  of  Joppa,  which 
flourished  down  to  the  time  of  the  Revolution, 
when  it  is  said  a war  vessel  was  built  there.  But 
meantime  the  modern  Baltimore,  on  the  Patapsco, 
had  been  growing  by  force  of  circumstances  and 
its  obvious  convenience.  Without  any  suggestion 
from  the  legislature,  vessels  went  there  to  trade, 
and  the  produfts  of  other  rivers  were  brought 
to  them. 


243 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

In  1729  the  assembly  passed  an  aft  to  estab- 
lish a town  on  the  north  side  of  the  Patapsco, 
and  the  commissioners  appointed  under  this  aft 
laid  out  a town  in  what  is  now  the  centre  of 
Baltimore,  which  in  the  end  enlarged  so  as  to 
embrace  three  settlements  in  its  neighborhood. 

Thirty  years  afterwards,  in  1752,  it  con- 
tained twenty-five  houses,  and  was  becoming  an 
important  mart  of  trade.  Germans  came  to  it 
from  Pennsylvania,  and  some  of  the  unfortunate 
Acadians  who  had  been  torn  from  their  homes 
in  Nova  Scotia  settled  there,  the  men  becoming 
sailors  and  the  women  eking  out  a living  by 
picking  oakum.  In  most  of  the  places  where 
they  sought  refuge  they  left  few  if  any  descend- 
ants, but  in  Baltimore  one  still  hears  of  the 
family  names  Berbine,  Blanc,  Dashield,  Gould, 
and  Guiteau. 

At  the  time  of  Braddock’s  defeat  there  were 
great  fears  that  the  Indians  would  reach  Balti- 
more ; some  of  them  came  within  eighty  miles 
of  it,  and  the  women  and  children  were  put  on 
vessels,  ready  to  escape  down  the  bay.  In  1768 
the  county  court-house  and  prison  were  moved 
from  Joppa  to  Baltimore.  Ten  years  afterwards 
Baltimore  contained  six  thousand  people,  and 
Joppa,  like  St.  Mary’s,  relapsed  into  desolation. 

Many  of  the  people  who  took  part  in  creating 
Baltimore  seem  to  have  been  fortunate  in  leaving 
244 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

descendants  who  are  still  prominent  in  the  life 
of  the  town.  In  its  early  annals  we  find  the 
familiar  names  Stewart,  Carroll,  Colgate,  Tilgh- 
man,  Howard,  Ridgely,  Van  Bibber,  Purviance, 
Fell,  McKim,  McHenry,  Williams,  Chase, 
Ellicott,  and  many  others  of  families  which  con- 
tinue to  be  well  known. 

By  the  time  of  the  Revolution  the  intellectual 
energy  of  Maryland  began  to  leave  Annapolis 
and  became  centred  in  Baltimore,  which  in  1790 
had  over  thirteen  thousand  inhabitants,  at  the 
close  of  the  century  had  doubled,  and  in  1810 
had  almost  doubled  again. 

Nearly  all  the  prominent  men  that  Maryland 
has  produced  have  lived  in  Baltimore,  drifting  to 
it  inevitably  as  they  advanced  in  life.  Chief-Jus- 
tice Taney,  although  the  most  important  of  the 
principles  he  represented  have  been  overthrown, 
was  in  many  respefts  the  most  eminent  of  the 
Marylanders.  He  was  born  in  Calvert  County, 
of  a Roman  Catholic  family,  and  went  to  live 
in  Baltimore  after  his  fifty-sixth  year.  His  con- 
spicuous ability  as  a lawyer  had  drawn  him  into 
politics  as  a young  man.  A Federalist  in  early 
life,  he  joined  the  wing  of  that  party  which  sup- 
ported the  war  of  1812,  and  after  that  gradually 
became  a Democrat,  and  was  United  States  Attor- 
ney-General under  Jackson’s  administration. 

Duane,  who  was  Secretary  of  the  Treasury, 
245 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

refused  to  carry  out  Jackson’s  whim  for  re- 
moving the  government  deposits  from  the  United 
States  Bank.  Taney  was  made  Duane’s  successor, 
immediately  removed  the  deposits,  and  precipi- 
tated the  financial  panic  which  followed.  This 
was  the  beginning  of  Taney’s  vast  unpopularity. 

Some  years  afterwards  he  was  made  Chief- 
Justice  of  the  United  States,  to  succeed  Chief- 
Justice  Marshall,  and  immediately  began  to  turn 
the  decisions  of  the  court  away  from  the  lines 
which  had  been  laid  down  by  Marshall  and 
Story,  and  towards  the  doftrine  of  State  rights. 
Some  of  his  decisions,  however,  have  been  up- 
held, and  have  become  settled  principles  of  con- 
stitutional law ; but  his  best-known  decision,  in 
the  Dred  Scott  case,  where  he  held  that  Con- 
gress had  no  power  to  prohibit  slavery  in  the 
Territories,  raised  another  storm  of  unpopularity, 
and  contributed,  perhaps  more  than  any  other 
one  event,  to  bring  on  the  civil  war.  But 
Taney’s  decision  during  the  war,  that  the  Presi- 
dent could  not  suspend  the  privilege  of  the  writ 
of  habeas  corpus  without  authority  from  Con- 
gress, is  now  upheld  as  sound. 

In  colonial  times  and  during  the  Revolution 
the  only  Marylanders  who  were  conspicuously 
prominent  were  Samuel  Chase  and  Charles 
Carroll,  both  of  whom  signed  the  Declaration 
of  Independence. 


246 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

Chase  was  an  extreme  patriot  in  the  Revolu- 
tion, a violent  opponent  of  the  Stamp  Aft,  and 
one  of  a party  who  seized  the  stamps  and  burnt 
the  colleftor  in  effigy.  He  served  in  the  Conti- 
nental Congress  for  many  years,  and  was  an 
adtive  and  untiring  member,  although  his  name 
is  not  connefted  with  any  conspicuous  opinions 
or  aft  except  his  mission,  in  company  with 
Carroll  and  Franklin,  to  persuade  Canada  to 
join  in  the  Revolution.  He  was  prominent  in 
Maryland  affairs  after  the  Revolution,  and  be- 
came one  of  the  justices  of  the  Supreme  Court 
of  the  United  States. 

Charles  Carroll,  like  many  other  Maryland 
Roman  Catholics,  had  been  sent  to  France  for 
his  education,  and  most  elaborately  trained  at 
those  “ popish  seminaries,”  as  they  were  called, 
St.  Omer’s,  Rheims,  and  Louis  le  Grand,  where, 
as  the  Protestants  complained.  Catholic  children 
invariably  imbibed  a bitter  hostility  to  England. 
Young  Carroll  afterwards  went  to  England  for 
a time,  where  he  finished  his  elaborate  education 
by  studying  the  English  common  law,  having 
already  familiarized  himself  with  the  civil  law 
on  the  Continent. 

His  ancestors,  the  O’ Carrolls  of  Ireland,  had 
been  princes  and  lords  of  Ely  and  kings  of  Mun- 
ster. His  migrating  ancestor  came  to  Maryland 
after  James  II.,  in  whose  service  he  had  been 
247 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

employed,  was  dethroned  and  the  Protestants 
under  William  and  Mary  came  into  power.  He 
soon  became  dissatisfied  with  the  suppressed  con- 
dition of  the  Catholics,  and  formed  with  some 
of  them  a projeft  for  migrating  to  the  French 
possessions  in  the  Mississippi  Valley.  He  vis- 
ited France  for  this  purpose,  and  his  plan  would 
in  all  probability  have  been  carried  out  if  the 
French  government  had  not  thought  the  traft  of 
land  asked  for  too  large  to  be  granted  to  a subjeft. 

In  Maryland,  Charles  Carroll  first  became 
conspicuous  for  his  opposition  to  the  laws  which 
taxed  all  the  people  of  the  province  for  the  sup- 
port of  the  established  church.  His  opponent 
in  this  controversy  was  Daniel  Dulany,  a very 
prominent  lawyer,  well  known  in  the  other 
colonies,  but  a tory  in  the  Revolution,  and  in 
consequence  neglefted  by  the  historians. 

Carroll  was,  like  Chase,  a man  of  much  in- 
fluence in  provincial  affairs  and  aftive  in  the 
Revolution  ; and,  like  Chase,  he  was  an  extreme 
patriot,  favoring  a public  declaration  of  inde- 
pendence before  most  of  the  colonists  were 
ready  for  such  a radical  measure. 

William  Wirt,  William  Pinkney,  and  Rev- 
erdy  Johnson  were  all  Marylanders,  and  during 
the  half-century  after  the  Revolution  very  emi- 
nent in  public  life  as  well  as  in  law.  Luther 
Martin  was  also  a remarkable  lawyer  of  similar 
248 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

distin&ion  ; but,  though  he  lived  in  Maryland  a 
large  part  of  his  life,  he  was  born  in  New 
Jersey. 

John  Pendleton  Kennedy,  a Baltimorean,  who 
was  Secretary  of  the  Navy,  and  took  a leading 
part  in  promoting  Commodore  Perry’s  famous 
expedition  to  open  the  ports  of  Japan,  enjoyed  in 
his  day  considerable  literary  fame.  His  stories, 
“Swallow  Barn,”  “Horseshoe  Robinson,”  and 
“ Rob  of  the  Bowl,”  are  not  yet  forgotten. 

He  was  on  intimate  terms  with  Thackeray, 
and  was  with  him  in  Paris  when  “ The  Vir- 
ginians” was  being  published  as  a serial  story. 
Thackeray  complained  that  he  was  disinclined 
to  supply  the  next  instalment  for  the  printer, 
and  suggested  in  his  jovial  way  that  Kennedy 
write  it.  This  much  Kennedy  tells  us  in  his 
diary.  His  admirers  in  Baltimore  insist  that  he 
complied  with  the  request,  and  wrote  that  part  of 
the  fourth  chapter  in  the  second  volume  describ- 
ing George  Warrington’s  escape  from  Fort  Du 
Ouesne  by  Braddock’s  trail ; and  there  are  certainly 
in  this  part  descriptions  of  scenery  which  do  not 
read  like  Thackeray. 

Edgar  Allan  Poe  is  often  spoken  of  as  a Mary- 
lander ; but  his  early  education  and  influences 
were  all  received  in  Virginia  and  England.  He 
lived  in  Baltimore  at  times,  and  attained  there 
his  first  real  fame,  when  he  was  awarded  the 
249 


Puritan  and  Catholic  on  the  Chesapeake 

prize  for  his  story,  “ The  Manuscript  found  in 
a Bottle.”  But  Francis  Scott  Key,  the  author  of 
“The  Star-Spangled  Banner,”  was  in  the  fullest 
sense  a Marylander,  and  one  of  whom  the  State 
is  justly  proud,  as  it  also  is  of  the  naval  hero, 
Stephen  Decatur. 


Welch  House  • Annapolis 


LANDGRAVES,  PIRATES,  AND  CAZIQUES 

^jAROLINA  was  the  great  domain  which  in 
the  year  1629  Charles  I.  gave  to  Sir 
Robert  Heath,  his  attorney-general,  and  it  was 
named  after  the  king, — an  attractive,  soft  name 
which,  like  Virginia,  seems  to  suit  the  climate 
and  surroundings.  We  have  often  made  most 
lamentable  failures  in  the  names  of  our  towns, 
especially  the  smaller  ones.  Indeed,  we  seem 
to  be  bereft  of  all  taste  and  judgment  in  naming 
them.  But  in  the  names  of  our  States,  whether 
taken  from  kings  or  from  Indians,  we  have  always 
been  most  fortunate. 

Carolina  included  the  country  from  Virginia 
to  Florida,  but  natural  conditions  and  other  cir- 
cumstances soon  split  it  up  into  three  separate 
communities,  which  are  now  North  Carolina, 
South  Carolina,  and  Georgia.  The  way  ip 
251 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

which  these  divisions  were  created  reveals  the 
history  and  charafteristics  of  each. 

No  settlement  was  made  under  the  grant  to 
Sir  Robert  Heath.  It  remained  a mere  piece 
of  parchment  among  the  records  of  the  British 
government.  But  still  it  had  a purpose  to  serve. 
It  had  given  a name  and  described  a territory. 
As  years  passed  by  Charles  I.  was  beheaded, 
the  people  grew  tired  of  Cromwell  and  his  son, 
and  the  Restoration  came  in  1660,  when  Charles 
II.  ascended  the  throne.  He  had  many  friends 
to  reward  for  bringing  him  to  his  own  again, 
and  in  1663  to  some  of  the  most  distinguished 
and  devoted  of  these  he  gave  Carolina,  for 
which  he  found  a name  and  boundaries  in  the 
old  grant  to  Sir  Robert  Heath. 

No  other  colony  in  America  was  ever  in  the 
possession  of  such  distinguished  and  experienced 
men  of  affairs  as  was  Carolina.  Its  proprietors 
were  the  Earl  of  Clarendon,  who  was  the  high 
chancellor  of  England  ; the  Duke  of  Albemarle, 
who  was  captain-general  of  the  army ; Lord 
Ashley,  afterwards  Earl  of  Shaftesbury,  chan- 
cellor of  the  exchequer ; and  there  were  also 
Lord  Craven,  Lord  Berkeley,  Sir  George  Car- 
teret, and  others, — all  men  of  eminence  who  are 
fondly  described  in  the  charter  as  the  “ right 
trusty  and  well  beloved  ” friends  of  the  king. 

If  Charles  II.  had  possessed  our  present 
252 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

knowledge  of  America,  he  would  hardly  have 
selected  Carolina  as  the  richest  gift  to  bestow 
upon  his  favorites.  He  would  have  given  them 
Pennsylvania  or  New  York.  But  he  thought  he 
was  giving  them  the  best  land  in  America. 
Everybody  else  thought  the  same.  The  pro- 
prietors themselves  no  doubt  selected  Carolina, 
and  suggested  to  the  king  that  it  should  be  part 
of  the  reward  for  their  services ; for  it  was  in 
that  way  that  such  things  were  done  at  court. 

The  Southern  colonies  from  Virginia  to 
Florida  always  had  a peculiar  charm  for  the 
people  of  England.  Every  sailor  and  explorer 
that  set  foot  upon  their  shores  was  carried  away 
at  once  by  the  suggestion  of  riches,  abundance, 
and  easy  life  that  appeared  on  every  hand  ; the 
sunlight  was  so  clear  and  yet  so  soft,  the  vege- 
tation so  luxuriant,  the  soil  so  black  and  rich. 
The  coast  was  cut  up  into  bays  and  sounds, 
winding  in  every  direction  among  islands  and 
shoals,  and  tempting  the  adventurer  with  strange 
scenes  at  every  turn.  The  waters  were  full 
of  every  variety  of  fish,  and  a single  random 
haul  of  a net  supplied  a fleet  of  vessels  with 
food  for  a whole  day.  When  they  were  tired 
of  fish,  they  picked  up  on  the  shoals  more 
oysters  than  they  could  use.  Myriads  of  wild 
fowl,  covering  the  water  by  acres,  swam  aside  to 
let  the  boats  pass  through  them,  and  the  plover 
253 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

and  snipe  followed  along  the  shoals  and  mud- 
flats in  clouds. 

When  they  stepped  on  shore  the  deer  sprang 
aside  among  the  trees,  and  the  wild  turkeys  flew 
away,  striking  their  wings  against  the  branches. 
As  they  pressed  inland,  they  found  the  level,  low 
shores  continue,  interspersed  with  swamps  and 
broad,  deep  rivers  bearing  slowly  towards  the  sea 
the  water  discolored  by  the  fertile  soil.  They 
struggled  through  dense  thickets  of  the  rankest 
growth,  they  waded  up  to  their  waists  in  the 
grass  of  open  savannas,  and  they  walked  free 
and  unimpeded  along  the  dry  ridges  where  the 
stately  pine-trees  grew. 

The  red  men  were  there  roasting  turkeys  be- 
fore great  fires  and  basting  them  with  bear’s  fat, 
planting  patches  of  corn  and  beans,  setting  fire 
to  the  woods  and  grass  in  a great  circle  to  drive 
all  the  game  on  to  an  isthmus  or  into  an  angle 
of  a river,  where  they  slaughtered  it  at  will  for 
a feast.  They  lived  easily  or  with  labor  that  was 
sport.  Their  manners  were,  by  turns,  as  soft  and 
pleasant  as  the  climate  or  as  fiery  and  wanton  as 
its  sun.  Almost  every  month  and  week  tribe 
fought  with  tribe  and  band  with  band,  creeping 
through  the  woods  at  night  to  surprise  each 
other’s  hunting  camps,  and  glorying  in  the  scalp 
torn  from  the  head  of  a child  or  an  old  squaw 
who  had  strayed  too  far  from  her  wigwam. 

254 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

They  received  the  white  man  with  profuse  hos- 
pitality, and  their  women  willingly  became  his 
mistresses. 

What  a change  it  was  from  misty,  cold  Brit- 
ain! The  Englishmen  were  delighted  with 
such  a country,  just  as  our  own  people  of  the 
North  are  still  delighted,  and  pour  into  it  to  fill 
its  hotels  and  resorts  and  lavish  their  money  on 
its  land  for  club  sites  or  orange  groves.  It  is  a 
land  which  seems  to  have  possessed  a supreme 
attraftion  for  men  of  great  souls  and  daring  en- 
terprise, not  always  for  their  advantage  ; and  was 
it  with  unconscious  fidelity  to  its  charafteristics 
that  they  usually  gave  its  places  feminine  names  ? 

There  was  no  more  pathetic  hour  in  the 
life  of  the  gallant  Ponce  de  Leon  than  when, 
as  an  old  man,  he  landed  on  these  shores  with 
his  followers  and  rushed  from  place  to  place, 
expefting  every  moment  to  find  the  fountain  of 
perpetual  youth.  It  seemed  as  if  it  must  be 
there  ; and  if  you  stand  there  to-day  and  dream 
for  a while,  you  almost  believe  it.  He  never 
found  it,  nor  did  he  see  the  trees  which  he  was 
looking  for  with  golden  fruit  plucked  by  beautiful 
maidens.  He  sailed  away  at  last,  disappointed, 
unsuccessful.  But  he  called  it  Florida,  the  land 
of  flowers,  a name  which  could  have  been  given 
only  by  a lover  ; and  when  he  returned  to  try 
again,  he  was  killed  by  the  Indians. 

255 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 


A grander  and  loftier  spirit  than  Ponce  de 
Leon,  Sir  Walter  Raleigh,  sent  out  his  captains 
Amidas  and  Barlow,  who  landed  on  the  outer 
beaches  of  the  North  Carolina  sounds.  They 
climbed  about  among  the  sand-dunes,  breathed 
the  bland  air  from  the  pines,  and  feasted  their 
eyes  on  the  soft,  liquid  light  that  they  could 
almost  feel.  They  never  penetrated  far  inland; 
but  they  were  infatuated,  and  described  to  Sir 
Walter  a land  where,  as  they  said,  the  grape-vines 
were  washed  by  the  breakers  of  the  sea;  and 
he  sent  expedition  after  expedition  to  make  the 
land  his  own  until  he  had  crippled  his  fortune. 

He  never  succeeded.  His  small  colony  of 
about  a hundred  people,  who  settled  on  Roanoke 
Island,  disappeared  completely,  and  no  trace  of 
them  could  ever  be  found.  Whether  they  per- 
ished of  famine  or  were  killed  by  the  Indians  is 
still  a mystery.  But  he  also  gave  the  land  a 
lover’s  name,  and  called  it  Virginia.  Who 
would  change  it?  Who  could? 

General  Greene,  of  Rhode  Island,  who,  after 
Washington,  was  the  ablest  soldier  of  the  Revo- 
lution, was  sent  to  drive  the  British  from  the 
South.  He  succeeded,  and  made  for  himself 
a deathless  name.  But  the  siren  voice  whis- 
pered to  him  through  the  pines,  and  the  soft, 
warm  wind  caressed  his  cheek.  When  the  war 
was  over,  his  reputation,  his  wide  opportunities 
256 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

in  the  North,  seemed  as  nothing.  He  secured 
a trail  of  land  on  the  Savannah  River,  to  which 
he  went  with  the  enthusiasm  of  a boy,  full  of 
dreams  of  wealth  and  pleasure.  But  the  siren 
took  the  hero  to  herself  so  completely  that  he 
perished  within  a year,  and  his  grave  has  never 
been  found. 

But  why  multiply  instances  ? for,  beginning 
with  the  heroes  of  old,  they  come  down  through 
every  decade  of  the  centuries.  In  the  days  of 
Webster  and  Calhoun  the  capital  and  energy  of 
the  North  were  sent  to  help  develop  the  rice 
and  cotton  plantations,  and  a large  part  of  it  re- 
mained in  the  fullest  sense  of  the  word  a perma- 
nent investment.  When  the  siren  rebelled  and 
fought  us  for  her  slaves,  why  did  we  not  let  the 
charmer  go  ? It  would  have  been  cheaper.  But 
no;  we  held  her  with  the  grip  of  death;  and  to 
keep  her  for  our  own  we  sacrificed  in  four  years 
millions  of  lives  and  dollars,  and  we  are  still 
sending  down  our  capital  to  develop  those  re- 
sources of  which  Raleigh  and  De  Leon  dreamed. 

But  we  must  return  to  the  early  settlement  and 
the  proprietors  of  Carolina  whose  eminence  and 
prailical  skill  were  of  little  avail  to  them  in  their 
enterprise.  Their  trail  of  land  was  a complete 
wilderness  from  the  English  settlement  of  Vir- 
ginia all  the  way  to  Florida,  which  was  held  by 
the  Spaniards.  They  thought  it  would  be  safest 
Vol.  II— 17  257 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 


to  start  at  the  northern  end,  close  to  Virginia ; 
and,  in  faff,  a number  of  Virginians  had  already 
passed  over  into  this  part  of  Carolina  and  estab- 
lished themselves  on  the  Chowan  River.  These 
settlers  were  ordered  to  consider  themselves  sepa- 
rated from  Virginia,  a governor,  William  Drum- 
mond, was  placed  over  them,  they  were  allowed 
a representative  assembly  to  make  laws  for  their 
guidance,  and  soon  after  the  governor  was  given 
a council  of  twelve  to  assist  and  advise  him. 

The  Virginians  who  composed  this  colony 
were  mostly  of  the  reckless  frontier  class,  with 
a strong  love  of  independence,  and  they  encour- 
aged others  of  the  same  sort  to  come  to  them. 
They  passed  laws  making  their  colony  a safe 
refuge  for  insolvent  debtors  from  England  or 
Virginia.  The  eminent  proprietors  approved 
these  laws,  and  in  their  turn  made  every  effort 
to  obtain  immigrants  and  force  on  development. 
Both  colonists  and  proprietors  thought  that  all 
that  was  needed  in  that  rich,  warm  soil  was  to 
bring  in  people  and  capital,  and  it  would  become 
a garden. 

These  same  ideas  still  prevail,  and  always 
have  prevailed,  in  the  whole  territory  that  was 
once  called  Carolina.  As  we  read  its  history  we 
find  the  most  ardent  encouragements  to  immi- 
gration ; and  when  encouraging  and  coaxing  failed 
to  bring  enough  white  men,  the  black  man  was 
258 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 


brought  in  by  the  hundred  thousand  against  his 
will.  The  insolvent  debtor  was  encouraged 
until  at  last  we  find  a whole  colony  established 
for  his  exclusive  benefit.  The  obligation,  legal 
as  well  as  moral,  of  paying  a debt  was  weakened 
until  the  individual  became  indifferent  or  indig- 
nant at  the  thought  of  it,  and  the  States  passed 
laws  repudiating  their  bonds. 

The  constant  cry  was,  “All  we  need  here  is 
people,  more  people.”  It  has  been  repeated  for 
two  hundred  and  fifty  years,  and  you  hear  it  when 
you  travel  in  the  South  to-day,  for  the  delusion 
still  prevails  that  the  country  is  to  be  built  up 
not  by  the  energy  and  thrift  of  its  own  citizens, 
but  by  the  assistance  of  the  foreigner  and  the 
Northern  capitalist. 

Besides  the  colony  on  the  Chowan,  another 
one  sprang  up  of  itself  at  the  mouth  of  the  Cape 
Fear  River,  in  the  neighborhood  of  the  present 
site  of  Wilmington.  This  place  had  been 
settled  by  New  England  people  some  time  be- 
fore the  proprietors  obtained  their  charter. 
The  New  Englanders  had  selected  the  spot  after 
careful  investigation  and  some  experience  of  the 
country,  and  they  bought  the  land  from  the 
Indians.  But  they  soon  abandoned  their  chosen 
spot,  leaving  fastened  to  a post  a paper  which 
expressed  in  strong  language  their  opinion  of 
the  country.  A company  of  explorers  from 
259 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

the  Barbadoes  arrived,  and,  fascinated  by  the 
appearance  of  the  place,  read  with  contempt  the 
paper  on  the  post.  Could  they  not  see  with 
their  own  eyes  what  the  country  was?  and  why 
should  they  heed  the  statement  of  some  fools 
who  had  abandoned  it  ? 

These  two  settlements — one  on  the  Chowan 
and  the  other  on  the  Cape  Fear — were  at  the 
extreme  northern  and  southern  limits  of  what 
afterwards  became  North  Carolina.  They  were 
almost  two  hundred  miles  apart,  great  sounds 
and  wide  rivers  and  swamps  lay  between  them, 
and  the  proprietors  were  obliged  to  manage 
them  as  two  separate  colonies,  each  with  its 
own  governor. 

Their  efforts  to  encourage  immigration  were 
partially  successful,  and,  as  they  sent  their  agents 
soliciting  colonists  into  almost  every  part  of  the 
British  dominions,  they  collected  in  North 
Carolina  a most  motley  and  miscellaneous  set  of 
people.  The  controlling  element  was  English, 
made  up  of  adventurers  and  debtors  from  Great 
Britain  and  Virginia,  with  a large  number  of 
New  Englanders  who  came  to  trade  and  often 
remained  in  the  colony.  Besides  these,  there 
were  some  French  Huguenots,  Germans,  and 
Swiss  who  had  been  drummed  up  by  the  agents 
of  the  proprietors.  But  all  the  efforts  to  force 
development  were  of  little  avail ; and  at  the  time 
260 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

of  the  Revolution,  when  the  settlements  which 
made  up  North  Carolina  were  a hundred  years 
old,  the  whole  population  was  only  about  two 
hundred  thousand,  of  whom  nearly  half  were 
negro  slaves. 

The  province,  as  can  be  seen  at  once  by  a 
glance  at  the  map,  was  shut  in  by  sand-banks 
forming  the  outer  boundaries  of  the  great  sounds. 
The  inlets  through  these  banks  were  dangerous 
to  navigate,  and  there  were  no  convenient  places 
for  a city  or  harbor,  except  at  the  Cape  Fear 
colony,  and  even  that  offered  comparatively  few 
advantages.  The  land  near  the  sounds  and  rivers 
was  low  and  swampy,  reeking  with  malaria,  and 
not  calculated  to  produce  a population  that 
would  support  a town.  The  people  lived  scat- 
tered far  apart  on  farms  and  plantations,  wherever 
they  could  find  a suitable  spot.  Their  isolation 
increased  their  love  of  independence,  and  the 
few  occasions  when  they  united  for  purposes  of 
government  usually  ended  in  turbulence  or  riot. 
There  were  few  laws  and  no  lawyers.  The 
laws  were  never  printed,  but  only  read  aloud  in 
the  market-place,  and  the  courts  and  the  legisla- 
ture met  in  private  houses  or  taverns. 

Virginia  constantly  complained  that  she  was 
tormented  by  a nest  of  criminals  and  outlaws 
on  her  southern  border.  In  one  of  the  rebel- 
lions the  insurgents  captured  the  treasury  and 
261 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

government  of  the  colony,  and  when  they  were 
subdued,  disorder  and  license  still  continued.  In 
the  course  of  forty  years,  from  1676  to  17 1 7, 
the  people  had  increased  from  fourteen  hundred 
to  only  two  thousand.  Under  the  royal  gov- 
ernment, which  succeeded  the  control  of  the 
proprietors,  there  was  some  improvement,  and 
the  people  increased  to  one  hundred  and  fifty 
thousand  whites  at  the  time  of  the  Revolution. 
But  as  late  as  1770  there  was  an  insurrection 
which  closed  the  courts  of  law  and  defied  the 
government  until  it  was  suppressed  by  an  army 
under  Governor  Tryon,  who  defeated  the  insur- 
gents in  a battle  and  hung  the  leaders. 

The  people  lived  an  extremely  isolated,  inde- 
pendent life,  each  family  sequestered  on  its 
small  farm,  surrounded  by  dense  swamps,  doing 
whatever  seemed  right  in  its  own  eyes,  and 
living  largely  by  hunting  and  a little  agricul- 
ture, in  which  the  women  performed  a large  part 
of  the  labor.  There  were  only  three  towns 
or  villages, — Wilmington,  Edenton,  and  New- 
Berne, — the  largest  of  which  scarcely  contained 
six  hundred  people,  and  it  was  not  until  the  next 
century  that  North  Carolina  began  to  have  any 
importance  as  a State. 

But  her  self-reliant,  independent  people,  ac- 
customed to  insurreftions,  were  very  forward  in 
the  Revolution,  which  was  a movement  exattly 
262 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

suited  to  their  taste.  On  May  31,  1775,  more 
than  a year  before  the  Declaration  of  Indepen- 
dence was  adopted  at  Philadelphia,  the  people  of 
Mecklenburg  County  declared  that  all  British  au- 
thority had  ceased,  and  chose  officers  whom  they 
instructed  to  aft  independently  of  the  crown 
and  parliament.  But  they  did  not,  as  has  been 
supposed,  use  the  language  of  the  Declaration 
at  Philadelphia.  It  was  most  characteristic  of 
them,  and  shows  the  disunited  condition  in 
which  they  had  lived;  for  Mecklenburg  County 
declared  her  independence,  set  up  a govern- 
ment, and  seemed  ready  to  stand  alone  before 
the  world  without  any  regard  for  the  rest  of 
North  Carolina. 

In  Georgia  and  North  Carolina  the  slave  pop- 
ulation was  not  so  excessive  as  in  South  Caro- 
lina. In  Georgia  the  whites  and  blacks  were 
about  equal  in  number,  and  in  North  Carolina 
the  white  people  considerably  outnumbered  the 
negroes,  and  there  seems  to  have  been,  in  conse- 
quence, less  severe  and  cruel  treatment  of  the 
slaves  than  in  South  Carolina. 

Soon  after  the  settlements  on  the  Cape  Fear 
and  the  Chowan,  which  became  North  Carolina, 
were  established,  the  proprietors  had  an  oppor- 
tunity to  begin  another  colony,  which  in  time 
became  South  Carolina.  The  sand-banks  and 
shoals  with  their  dangerous  entrances,  which  so 
263 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

effectually  protected  North  Carolina  from  civili- 
zation, become  less  formidable  farther  down  the 
coast,  and  about  one  hundred  and  twenty  miles 
below  the  mouth  of  the  Cape  Fear  there  is  a 
large,  safe  entrance  into  what  is  now  the  harbor 
of  Charleston,  and  about  sixty  miles  farther 
south  is  the  harbor  of  Beaufort. 

Beaufort  had  been  visited  one  hundred  years 
before,  in  1562,  when  Jean  Ribault  attempted 
to  establish  there  a settlement  of  French  Hugue- 
nots. In  1667  William  Sayle  explored  the 
coast,  and  two  years  later  the  proprietors  of 
Carolina  sent  him  out  to  colonize  it.  He  began 
at  Beaufort,  which  seems  to  have  been  the  place 
best  known  to  every  one ; but  he  soon  moved 
his  colony  to  Charleston  harbor,  the  superior 
advantages  of  which  were  quickly  discovered. 
H is  first  colonists  were  adventurers  and  rough 
characters  picked  up  in  London  and  various  parts 
of  England,  with  a few  New  Englanders,  and 
were  more  unpromising  even  than  the  people  of 
North  Carolina.  Their  numbers  and  their  names 
are  unknown. 

The  proprietors  made  great  efforts  to  encour- 
age other  settlers,  and  as  time  went  on  the  efforts 
were  increased.  Contracts,  bounties,  free  lands, 
and  every  other  inducement  were  offered,  and 
anybody  that  would  come  was  accepted.  The 
result  was,  of  course,  a very  miscellaneous  pop- 
264 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

ulation, — Cavaliers,  Puritans,  bankrupts,  and 
every  variety  of  the  restless  or  unfortunate ; 
people  from  the  Barbadoes,  a congregation  of 
Puritans  from  Massachusetts,  Dutch  from  New 
York,  Scotch,  Germans,  Scotch-Irish,  French 
from  Acadia,  and,  after  the  revocation  of  the 
Edict  of  Nantes,  a large  number  of  Huguenots. 

The  reckless  and  desperate  characters  prob- 
ably did  not  have  large  families,  and  in  after- 
years gave  little  increase  to  the  population. 
But  the  Huguenots  were  an  important  element. 
They  remained  in  the  country,  and  those  famous 
names  in  South  Carolina  history,  Legare,  Lau- 
rens, Marion,  and  Manigault,  are  from  that  stock. 
Besides  these,  who  became  well  known,  there 
was  a large  number  of  the  most  respectable 
families  that  were  Huguenot : Boiseau,  Cheva- 
lier, Dupre,  Foissin,  Gerard,  Horry,  Jeanner- 
rette,  Newville,  Prioleau,  Ravenel,  Simons, 
Serre,  and  Trezevant  are  names  that  have  been 
always  more  or  less  familiar  to  Carolinians. 
The  Scotch-Irish  were  also  important,  and,  as 
in  all  the  other  colonies,  most  of  them  went  out 
on  the  frontier. 

But  although  this  recital  of  people  gives  an 
impression  of  a great  increase  and  development, 
the  immigrants  were,  in  faft,  comparatively  few 
in  numbers,  and  they  failed  to  increase  after 
their  arrival.  The  flourish  with  which  some 
265 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 


of  the  historians  have  described  the  rush  to 
South  Carolina  is  soon  dissipated  by  a careful 
investigation  into  the  aftual  results.  The  num- 
bers are  seldom  given  or  known,  and,  when 
given,  are  usually  very  small,  and  many  of 
them  refused  to  remain.  The  fifteen  hundred 
French  who  came  from  Nova  Scotia  soon  left 
the  country. 

At  the  time  of  the  Revolution  the  whole 
population  of  South  Carolina  was  only  about 
one  hundred  and  seventy-five  thousand,  hardly 
as  much  as  North  Carolina  had,  and  of  this 
number  more  than  one  hundred  thousand  were 
negro  slaves.  The  blacks  outnumbered  the 
whites  in  colonial  times  usually  two  or  three  to 
one,  and  for  a long  time  were  imported  at  the 
rate  of  three  thousand  a year.  This  black  com- 
pulsory immigration,  of  which  no  boast  is  made, 
was  the  principal  source  of  the  population  and 
the  controlling  element  in  the  history  of  the 
province. 

The  whites  did  not  increase  rapidly  by  births. 
Large  families  were  not  common  among  them, 
and  there  was  none  of  that  rapid  native  growth 
which  was  so  remarkable  in  the  Northern  colo- 
nies, especially  in  New  England.  The  climate, 
in  spite  of  all  its  charms,  was  not  favorable. 
The  land  near  the  coast,  where  the  greater  part 
of  the  people  lived  during  the  colonial  period, 
266 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

was,  like  the  coast  land  of  North  Carolina,  low, 
malarious,  and  not  as  fertile  as  it  seemed,  except 
for  the  growth  of  rice  and  indigo,  which  were 
not  introduced  until  after  the  lapse  of  many 
years. 

In  later  times,  as  the  people  progressed  more 
towards  the  western  highlands,  they  encountered 
better  conditions,  and  when,  some  years  after 
the  Revolution,  the  cotton-gin  was  invented, 
cotton-growing  on  the  uplands  gave  a new  im- 
petus to  prosperity.  But  the  cultivation  of  rice, 
although  covering  large  districts  of  the  marsh 
lands,  required  a comparatively  small  population 
besides  the  negroes,  and  in  colonial  times  rice 
and  indigo,  with  some  wheat  and  corn  in  the 
western  districts,  composed  the  principal  pro- 
ductions of  the  Carolinians.  The  plantations 
were  large,  and  the  fertile  land  was  all  in  the 
hands  of  a few  people.  There  were  no  small 
holdings,  and  no  manufa&uring  or  diversified 
industries  which  would  build  up  a large  popu- 
lation and  sound  prosperity. 

The  proprietors,  however,  never  doubted  the 
success  of  their  colonies,  and  their  only  fear 
seems  to  have  been  that  they  had  not  secured 
land  enough.  In  1665  they  obtained  another 
grant,  extending  their  northern  limits  a few  miles 
farther  up  into  Virginia  and  their  southern 
boundary  far  down  into  the  Spanish  possessions 
267 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

in  Florida,  and,  like  the  first  grant,  giving  them 
everything  westward  to  the  Pacific  Ocean.  Be- 
lieving that  they  now  had  room  enough  to  move 
in,  they  prepared  in  1669  an  elaborate  constitu- 
tion for  the  government  of  their  enormous  pos- 
sessions. The  document  was  prepared  by  the 
great  philosopher,  John  Locke,  whom  they  had 
interested  in  their  plans,  and  who  for  some 
years  served  them  as  a sort  of  unofficial  secre- 
tary. The  Earl  of  Shaftesbury  lent  him  some 
assistance,  and  the  other  proprietors  made  sug- 
gestions. 

It  was  the  most  highly  aristocratic  form  of 
government  that  has  ever  been  attempted  in 
America.  The  head  of  all  was  the  palatine, 
who  was  always  to  be  the  eldest  of  the  lord  pro- 
prietors ; next  in  dignity  came  the  seven  other 
proprietors,  and  after  them  the  hereditary  nobil- 
ity, the  landgraves,  and  the  caziques.  Besides 
these,  there  were  to  be  admirals,  chamberlains, 
chancellors,  chief-justices,  high  stewards,  and 
treasurers.  Each  county  was  to  consist  of  eight 
seigniories,  eight  baronies,  and  four  precinfts, 
and  each  precinft  was  to  contain  six  colonies  ; 
and  there  were  also  to  be  manors  and  lords  of 
the  manor,  court-leets,  leet-men  and  leet-women, 
a grand  council,  a parliament,  a palatine’s  court, 
and  courts  for  all  the  other  dignitaries.  And  all 
this  elaborate  system  was  to  be  administered  in 
26S 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

a territory  extending  two  thousand  miles  to  the 
Pacific,  including  Alabama,  Tennessee,  Missis- 
sippi, Arkansas,  Louisiana,  Texas,  New  Mexico, 
Arizona,  part  of  California,  and  a large  part  of 
Mexico. 

Some  years  passed  before  any  attempt  was 
made  to  enforce  this  constitution,  and  meantime 
the  colonists  at  Charleston  established  a govern- 
ment of  their  own,  consisting  of  an  assembly 
elefted  by  the  people,  and  a sort  of  upper  house 
or  governor’s  council.  Afterwards  Locke’s 
constitution  was  partially  enforced  until  the 
year  1693,  when  it  was  abrogated.  There  are 
still  some  people  in  South  Carolina  who  are 
the  descendants  of  the  nobility  which  Locke 
created. 

In  1693  the  division  between  South  and 
North  Carolina  was  recognized,  and  ever  after 
that  they  were  regarded  as  separate  colonies,  but 
were  for  a long  time  under  the  same  governor. 
They  were  radically  different  in  their  circum- 
stances and  development.  The  people  of  North 
Carolina  were  scattered  over  a vast  extent  of 
wild  country  of  rivers  and  swamps,  and  saw  very 
little  of  each  other.  Their  towns  or  villages 
were  few,  small,  and  far  apart.  But  South 
Carolina  was  essentially  a colony  of  one  town, 
and  the  life  of  the  people  centred  in  Charles- 
ton very  much  as  the  life  of  the  colony  of 
269 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

Massachusetts  Bay  centred  in  Boston.  The 
South  Carolinians  advanced  in  the  arts  of  life, 
and  became  a people  of  self-conscious  civic 
pride,  independence,  and  aggressiveness,  which 
was  curiously  like  what  we  find  in  Massachu- 
setts. 

Charleston  would  indeed  be  a better  name  for 
the  colony  than  South  Carolina.  The  govern- 
ing classes  lived  there,  the  political  riots  and 
disturbances  took  place  there,  and  the  town  ruled 
the  rest  of  the  province  very  much  as  Paris 
has  ruled  France.  It  was  the  most  intensely 
centralized  community  in  America  in  colonial 
times  and  for  many  years  afterwards. 

A large  part  of  its  history  has  been  lost.  The 
destruftive  fires  and  hurricanes  which  have  so 
often  visited  Charleston  have  swept  out  of  exist- 
ence many  documents  and  records,  the  British 
destroyed  many  more  at  the  time  of  the  Revolu- 
tion, and  the  people  were  not  careful  to  preserve 
what  remained.  Some  years  after  the  Revolu- 
tion, through  the  efforts  of  Dr.  Ramsay,  much  of 
the  lost  history  of  the  province  was  recovered, 
but  largely  from  the  uncertain  sources  of  tradi- 
tion and  recolleftion  among  the  descendants  of 
the  early  settlers. 

What  we  have  reveals  a state  of  turmoil,  con- 
test, and  struggle  among  the  incongruous  elements 
of  the  people  so  closely  associated  which  throws 
270 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

considerable  light  on  the  chara&eristics  of  the 
State  which  have  become  prominent  in  modern 
times. 

The  majority  of  the  colonists  were  English 
dissenters,  mostly  Presbyterians,  and  in  some 
respefts  like  the  Puritans  who  settled  Massa- 
chusetts. In  faft,  a Puritan  congregation  from 
Dorchester,  Massachusetts,  emigrated  to  South 
Carolina  and  established  themselves,  naming 
their  settlement  after  the  town  they  had  left  in 
New  England.  But  the  dissenters  of  South 
Carolina  were  by  no  means  so  severe  and 
fanatical  as  the  Massachusetts  Puritans.  The 
organization  of  their  churches  was  less  thor- 
ough, their  doftrines  less  precise,  and  they  were 
less  disposed  to  reason  keenly  or  intolerantly 
about  religion.  For  many  years  there  were 
no  church  services  held  outside  of  Charles- 
ton. The  Carolinians,  like  the  rest  of  the 
Southerners,  have  always  taken  their  religion 
easily,  and  it  rests  upon  them  as  lightly  as  they 
sit  their  horses ; not  because  they  are  indif- 
ferent, but  because  they  accept  it  simply  with- 
out intolerance  and  without  speculative  inquiry. 

The  Presbyterians  before  long  organized 
themselves  throughout  the  colony ; but  the 
members  of  the  Church  of  England  secured 
possession  of  the  government,  and  their  church 
was  the  established  religion  down  to  the  time 
271 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

of  the  Revolution.  The  proprietors  favored 
the  Cavaliers  and  Episcopalians,  encouraged 
them  in  their  control  of  the  government,  and 
at  first  this  was  bitterly  resented  by  the  dis- 
senters. 

The  old  contest  which  had  raged  in  England 
in  the  time  of  Cromwell  was  fought  out  anew 
in  the  Carolina  marshes.  Mutual  jealousy  and 
contempt,  ridicule  of  the  austere  morals  of  the 
Puritans,  flaming  indignation  at  the  foppish 
vanity  and  luxuries  of  the  Cavaliers,  brought 
all  attempts  at  orderly  development  to  a stand. 
Of  the  few  laws  that  were  passed  nothing  is 
known.  There  were  five  governors  within  four 
years,  each  one  compelled  to  give  up  in  disgust. 
One  of  these,  James  Colleton,  a landgrave  under 
the  Locke  constitution,  proclaimed  martial  law 
as  a last  resort.  But  the  people  rose  against 
him,  laughed  at  his  attempt,  and  in  1690  passed 
a bill  in  the  assembly  abolishing  his  authority 
and  giving  him  a set  time  in  which  to  leave  the 
colony. 

After  him  a usurper,  Seth  Sothell,  under  an 
apparent  authority  from  England,  seized  the 
government,  and  imprisoned  traders  from  Ber- 
muda as  pirates  until  they  ransomed  themselves 
by  paying  what  he  called  fees.  He  enriched 
himself  by  accepting  bribes  from  criminals  and 
taking  violent  possession  of  farms  and  planta- 
272 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

tions,  until  the  people  again  arose  and  expelled 
him. 

The  arrival  of  the  French  Huguenots  was 
another  source  of  contention.  Their  numbers, 
as  well  as  their  industry  and  thrift,  gave  them 
considerable  importance,  but  their  presence  was 
resented  by  the  English.  Their  encouragement 
by  the  proprietors  was  regarded  by  the  English 
colonists  as  a great  imposition,  and  they  would 
allow  the  refugees  no  rights.  They  gave  them 
no  representation  in  the  assembly,  and  refused 
to  pass  a law  allowing  them  to  inherit  land  like 
natural-born  subjedfs.  At  this  time  the  assembly 
consisted  of  twenty  members,  all  chosen  in 
Charleston. 

The  opposition  to  the  proprietors  and  all 
their  plans  was  continuous.  The  colonists 
were  supposed  to  be  their  tenants  and  to  pay 
a small  quit-rent  for  every  acre  they  occupied. 
Very  little  of  the  rent  was  ever  collected,  but 
the  proprietors  for  a long  time  believed  that  they 
would  soon  have  enormous  returns.  For  years 
they  continued  to  send  out  supplies  and  spend 
money  to  force  development,  and  in  a short 
time  had  sunk  in  this  way  more  than  eighteen 
thousand  pounds. 

The  colonists  were  not  the  sort  of  people 
who  would  readily  pay  quit-rents.  Adventurous 
and  reckless  by  nature,  these  traits  were  intensi- 
Vol.  ii. — 18  273 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 


fied  by  their  contests  with  one  another  and  the 
wild  life  they  were  compelled  to  lead. 

The  Indians  were  from  the  beginning  ex- 
tremely hostile  and  troublesome,  and  this  was  one 
of  the  circumstances  which  made  the  province  a 
community  of  one  town.  In  spite  of  their  dif- 
ferences of  opinion,  the  people  were  forced  to- 
gether for  prote&ion.  While  some  were  build- 
ing homes,  the  rest  stodd  on  guard.  They 
gathered  oysters  on  the  shoals  with  one  hand 
while  they  carried  their  guns  in  the  other.  They 
planted  crops  at  the  risk  of  their  lives,  and 
when  the  harvest  was  ripe  the  Indians  often  re- 
lieved them  of  it  in  a single  day.  The  soil  was 
found  unsuitable  for  grain,  and  they  had  not  yet 
discovered  that  rice  would  grow  in  the  swamp 
lands.  The  few  patches  of  fertile  land  were 
covered  with  heavy  timber,  and  the  spots  that 
were  open  were  usually  barren.  In  faft,  the 
people  were  often  on  the  verge  of  starvation 
in  this  land  which  had  been  thought  by  every 
explorer  to  be  the  paradise  of  plenty. 

Piracy  flourished  along  the  shores  of  Carolina, 
and  from  there  to  the  West  Indies,  as  long  as 
the  proprietary  rule  lasted  and  for  some  years 
afterwards.  Indeed,  it  extended  northward  into 
Delaware  Bay,  along  the  shores  of  New  Jersev. 
and  through  the  Long  Island  bays  and  coves  to 
Rhode  Island ; but  the  principal  source  ana 
274 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 


home  of  it  was  in  the  Carolina  sounds  and  the 
West  Indies.  The  Vikings  of  the  North  Sea 
and  the  Baltic,  the  ancestors  of  the  English  race, 
had  been  pirates  for  centuries,  and  when  oppor- 
tunity offers  their  seafaring  descendants  take  to 
the  ancient  occupation  with  supreme  delight. 

In  her  wars  with  France  and  Spain,  England 
encouraged  privateering,  and  privateering  is  con- 
ventional piracy.  The  step  from  one  to  the 
other  is  easy  and  natural.  A captain  and  crew 
licensed  to  prey  on  the  commerce  of  France  or 
Spain,  and  having  once  tasted  the  sweets  of 
plunder,  often  concluded  that  their  profits  would 
be  larger  if  they  made  the  commerce  of  the  world 
the  field  of  their  operations. 

There  was  a class  of  men  known  as  Bucca- 
neers, whose  head-quarters  were  from  time  to 
time  at  St.  Domingo,  Tortuga,  and  what  is  now 
called  British  Honduras  on  the  mainland.  They 
existed  in  consequence  of  the  efforts  of  Spain  to 
monopolize  for  herself  all  the  trade  with ' her 
colonies  in  South  America.  With  barbarous 
cruelty,  and  in  a spirit  of  stupid  short-sightedness, 
she  drove  away  all  ships  of  other  countries  and 
massacred  the  people  who  attempted  to  trade  or 
settle  in  her  territories.  In  revenge,  her  com- 
merce was  considered  fair  game  for  all  nations, 
and  the  men  known  as  Interlopers,  Brethren  of 
the  Coast,  or  Buccaneers,  flourished  on  the 
275 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 


plunder  of  it.  They  were  mostly  English, 
French,  and  Dutch  Protestants,  to  whose  love  of 
adventure  and  wild  life  was  added  a vigorous 
hatred  of  the  great  Roman  Catholic  nation. 
They  were  not  pirates  in  the  full  sense  of  the 
word,  for  they  confined  their  depredations  ex- 
clusively to  Spain.  They  were  well  disciplined 
and  organized,  and  many  of  them  held  religious 
services  on  their  ships. 

For  nearly  a hundred  years  they  led  a glorious 
life,  hunting  the  wild  cattle  of  St.  Domingo, 
cutting  mahogany  in  Honduras,  and  reducing  the 
power  of  their  great  enemy  as  effe&ually  as  it 
could  have  been  done  by  all  the  armies  of 
Europe.  To  the  protests  of  Spain,  the  other 
nations  answered,  “ They  are  not  licensed  by 
us ; attend  to  them  yourself,  for  you  are  the 
cause  of  them.” 

They  were  the  most  daring  and  heroic  of 
men.  No  disparity  of  numbers  deterred  them. 
In  their  small  boats  they  would  row  up  to  a 
Spanish  galleon,  avoiding  the  direft  fire  of  her 
guns,  and  pick  off  with  their  muskets  the  man 
at  the  helm  and  the  sailors  at  the  ropes.  Se- 
curing themselves  under  her  stern,  where  her 
guns  could  not  be  used,  the  crew  of  one  boat 
would  wedge  her  rudder,  while  the  rest  poured 
in  a raking  fire  until  they  were  ready  to  board 
and  drive  her  people  below  the  hatches. 

276 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

When  at  last  their  day  passed  and  they  were 
broken  up  and  scattered  by  changing  times  and 
conditions,  their  success  and  the  wealth  they  had 
acquired  encouraged  ordinary  piracy.  Sailors 
had  become  habituated  to  the  idea  of  plundering 
on  the  seas.  Many  of  them  had  been  privateers- 
men or  buccaneers,  and  they  had  all  seen  fortunes 
made  in  that  way  or  in  out-and-out  piracy. 
Their  success  was  wonderful,  and  a common 
seaman  often  had  a thousand  pounds  to  spend  in 
drink  and  gambling.  The  British  government 
was  slow  to  punish  them,  for  they  were  very 
numerous  and  skilful  and  their  ships  were  very 
fleet.  It  was  difficult  to  pursue  them  on  the 
vast  trafts  of  the  Atlantic  and  Indian  Oceans  or 
to  follow  them  into  the  intricate  navigation  of 
unexplored  sounds  and  bays. 

So  for  many  a day  they  reaped  their  golden 
harvests,  recruited  from  all  classes  of  people 
and  springing  up  in  the  most  unexpe&ed  ways. 
Several  women  figured  in  their  annals.  Mary 
Read  and  Anne  Bonny  followed  the  fortunes  of 
their  pirate  lovers  to  the  last,  and,  when  cap- 
tured, respeft  for  their  sex  saved  them  from 
execution.  Any  ship  that  sailed  from  port 
might  be  turned  into  a pirate  by  her  crew  before 
she  had  gone  a thousand  miles.  One  of  the 
most  successful  of  them  was  a large  vessel  be- 
longing to  the  East  India  Company,  the  Mocha 
277 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

Merchant,  whose  crew  made  her  a pirate  after 
they  had  left  Calcutta.  But  it  was  not  always 
the  crew,  for  sometimes  the  captain  would  sud- 
denly hoist  the  black  flag  and  call  on  his  men  to 
join  him. 

There  seldom  has  been  such  a field  for  writers 
of  romance,  and  we  have  stories  from  De  Foe’s 
“ Captain  Singleton,”  in  which  a Pennsylvania 
Quaker  is  one  of  the  charafters,  through  the 
novels  of  Cooper  and  Marryat,  down  to  Steven- 
son’s matchless  tale  of  “Treasure  Island.”  But 
the  subjeft  has  never  been  exhausted. 

The  pirates  became  so  rich  that  they  were  a 
money  power,  and  corrupted  the  administration 
of  the  laws  which  were  enafted  against  them. 
They  came  to  Charleston  with  perfeft  impu- 
nity, their  ships  lay  peacefully  at  anchor  in  the 
harbor,  and  they  bought  their  supplies  and  spent 
their  money  with  a lavishness  which  made  them 
popular  with  everybody.  A few  were  brought 
to  trial,  but  it  was  a farce.  They  employed  the 
most  respectable  lawyers  at  enormous  fees,  and 
no  jury  could  be  found  that  would  bring  them 
in  guilty.  Some  of  them  bought  land  and  set- 
tled themselves  in  the  province.  Prominent 
people  assisted  them  and  became  interested  in 
the  profits  of  their  enterprises,  until  governors 
and  secretaries  of  the  colony  were  involved  in 
this  occupation,  which  will  forever  appeal  to 
278 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

all  that  is  romantic  and  daring  in  human  nature. 
The  condition  of  affairs  is  shown  when  we  find 
that  the  proprietors  of  Carolina,  in  order  to 
gratify  the  people  and  smooth  over  everything, 
granted  an  indemnity  to  all  the  pirates  except 
those  who  had  committed  depredations  on  the 
dominions  of  the  Great  Mogul,  an  exception 
which  every  gentleman  of  the  sea  could  easily 
show  that  he  had  avoided. 

In  varying  degrees  the  pirates  enjoyed  privi- 
leges in  the  Northern  colonies..  The  shores  of 
New  Jersey  were  wild,  and  full  of  sounds  and 
inlets  with  shifting  or  dangerous  bars,  and  Long 
Island  had  many  secluded  coves  and  harbors. 
Proteftions  were  openly  sold  in  New  York,  and 
Governor  Fletcher  received  handsome  presents 
for  himself  and  for  his  wife  and  daughters. 
When  the  business  was  finally  suppressed  in  New 
York,  the  people  complained  that  the  province 
had  lost  a hundred  thousand  pounds  a year. 
Rhode  Island  and  Newport  also  enjoyed  rich 
returns.  In  Philadelphia  it  was  not  so  profit- 
able, for  the  religious  discipline  of  the  Quakers 
kept  them  from  it,  and  the  distance  up  the  river 
was  nearly  a hundred  miles.  But  Blackbeard 
bought  supplies  in  Philadelphia,  and  Evans 
owned  property  in  the  town. 

The  famous  Captain  Kidd  was  the  son  of  a 
Scotch  minister.  He  went  to  sea  when  very 
279 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

young,  and  became  one  of  the  most  daring  and 
successful  merchant  navigators  of  his  time.  He 
was  a privateersman  against  the  French,  and 
not  only  captured  valuable  prizes,  but  won  a 
high  reputation  for  courage  and  skill.  The  year 
1695  found  him  settled  in  New  York,  where  he 
had  married  and  retired  on  a competency.  In 
that  year  Lord  Bellamont  came  out  to  be  gover- 
nor of  both  New  York  and  Massachusetts,  and 
was  specially  instructed  by  the  king  to  suppress 
piracy.  But  he  met  with  very  serious  difficul- 
ties, for  the  men-of-war  could  not  be  used  for  the 
purpose,  and  the  pirates  were  popular  and  scat- 
tered over  the  seas  from  America  to  India.  No 
one  cared  to  fit  out  a private  vessel  against  them 
until  Captain  Kidd  volunteered  for  the  service. 

A company  was  formed  in  England,  consist- 
ing, besides  Lord  Bellamont,  of  Sir  Edmund 
Harrison,  the  Earl  of  Romney,  the  Duke  of 
Shrewsbury,  Lord  Orford,  and  the  Lord  Chan- 
cellor. These  distinguished  men  subscribed  six 
thousand  pounds,  with  which  they  purchased  a 
vessel  of  two  hundred  and  eighty-seven  tons, 
mounting  thirty  guns.  Kidd  was  given  com- 
mand, and  it  is  significant  of  the  condition  of 
the  times  that  the  greatest  caution  was  taken  in 
appointing  him.  Livingston,  of  New  York, 
went  security  for  his  fidelity,  and  when  the  ship 
was  equipped  in  England,  great  pains  were  taken 
280 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

to  obtain  respeftable  sailors  of  steady  habits  with 
families.  Not  enough  of  this  class  could  be 
secured,  however,  and  a large  part  of  the  crew 
was  taken  on  at  New  York.  In  the  voyage  to 
New  York,  Kidd  captured  a French  prize,  and 
thence  sailed  to  Madagascar,  which  was  the  prin- 
cipal resort  of  the  pirates. 

Kidd’s  authority  from  the  crown  was  pecu- 
liar. He  was  commissioned  as  a privateersman 
against  the  French,  and  also  against  all  pirates, 
for  the  purpose  of  bringing  them  to  trial  for 
their  crimes.  Another  document,  called  a war- 
rant, gave  the  members  of  the  company  all  the 
property  that  should  be  taken  from  the  pirates, 
and  the  company  then  entered  into  a recogni- 
zance to  give  one-tenth  of  the  spoil  to  the  king. 
It  was  in  effeft  a piratical  expedition  to  put 
down  piracy,  and  the  king  was  to  share  in  the 
plunder. 

That  Kidd,  when  once  in  the  Indian  Seas, 
found  plain,  straightforward  piracy  more  profit- 
able than  the  arrangement  with  Lord  Bellamont 
and  his  illustrious  friends  was  natural.  In  the 
course  of  his  ravages,  which  extended  only  over 
two  or  three  years,  a sailor,  William  Moore, 
when  told  by  Kidd  that  he  was  a dog,  replied 
that  if  he  was  it  was  Kidd  who  had  made  him 
one.  Kidd  instantly  struck  him  dead  on  the 
deck  with  a bucket.  Soon  after  he  returned  to 
281 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

Long  Island  Sound  in  a small  sloop,  and  sent 
word  to  Lord  Bellamont,  who  was  in  Boston, 
that  he  was  ready  to  prove  his  innocence. 

Bellamont  received  him  ; but  his  answers  to 
questions  were  so  peculiar,  and  he  distributed  so 
many  valuable  presents  to  important  persons, 
that  he  was  arrested  and  sent  to  England.  It 
has  sometimes  been  said  that  there  was  not 
enough  evidence  to  convifl  him  of  piracy,  and 
that  he  was  tried  for  the  murder  of  William 
Moore  ; but  according  to  the  best  accounts  he 
seems  to  have  been  tried  for  and  convifted  of 
both  offences.  The  booty  which  was  taken 
from  his  immediate  possession,  or  from  places 
where  he  had  deposited  it  in  Long  Island  Sound, 
amounted  to  fourteen  thousand  pounds. 

He  was  not  in  any  sense  a remarkable  pirate, 
and  perhaps  would  not  have  become  so  famous 
but  for  the  suspicion  that  the  members  of  the 
company  who  sent  him  out  knew  of  his  inten- 
tion to  turn  pirate  and  hoped  to  share  his 
profits.  As  they  were  nearly  all  distinguished 
noblemen,  aftive  in  political  life,  a great  scandal 
was  stirred  up,  which  absorbed  the  attention  of 
Parliament  and  the  English  public  for  a long 
time.  Learned  arguments  were  made  by  law- 
yers questioning  the  right  of  the  crown  to  issue 
such  a commission  coupled  with  an  arrangement 
for  reserving  a tenth  of  the  captured  property  and 
282 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 


giving  the  rest  to  the  company.  The  property 
taken,  it  was  said,  would  have  been  stolen  by 
the  pirates  from  peaceful  merchants,  who  were 
entitled  to  have  it  returned  to  them.  By  what 
right  could  it  be  given  to  the  company?  The 
apologists,  of  course,  explained  that  all  property 
for  which  a lawful  owner  could  be  found  would 
have  been  restored,  and  that  everything  would 
have  been  conducted  regularly  and  settled  in 
courts  of  admiralty. 

Edward  Teach,  or  Blackbeard,  as  he  was 
called,  has  always  been  a famous  pirate  in 
American  annals ; but  his  career,  like  that  of 
Kidd,  was  a very  short  one  of  two  years,  from 
1716  to  1718,  and  he  was  not  remarkably  suc- 
cessful in  comparison  with  many  others  de- 
scribed in  Johnson’s  “ History  of  the  Pirates” 
and  other  books.  He  was  an  Englishman  from 
Bristol,  and  before  he  turned  pirate  had  served 
in  a subordinate  position  on  privateersmen.  His 
first  appointment  to  command  gave  him  the  op- 
portunity he  wanted,  and  he  made  his  head- 
quarters on  the  coast  of  North  Carolina,  at 
Ocracoke  Inlet,  a place  which  is  still  very  iso- 
lated and  difficult  of  access. 

From  there  he  could  communicate  with  Gov- 
ernor Charles  Eden,  of  that  province,  with  whom 
he  is  said  to  have  shared  his  plunder.  People 
still  look  for  the  treasure  he  is  supposed  to  have 
283 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

buried;  but  Teach  himself,  when  once  asked 
where  it  was,  replied,  “ Only  me  and  the  devil 
know,  and  the  longest  liver  of  the  two  will 
get  it.” 

The  picturesque  element  in  his  character 
accounts  largely  for  his  fame  ; for,  besides  his 
extraordinary  brutality,  he  wore  his  long  black 
beard  twisted  in  curls  round  his  ears,  and  in 
aftion  he  carried  lighted  slow  matches  in  his 
hat.  He  was  finally  pursued  into  his  retreat  by 
Lieutenant  Maynard  of  the  royal  navy,  and 
killed  in  a fierce  contest,  in  which  the  water 
round  the  sloops  was  covered  with  blood,  but 
not  until  Blackbeard  had  destroyed  more  than 
thirty  of  the  lieutenant’s  men.  Maynard  cut 
off  his  head  and,  mounting  it  on  the  bowsprit 
of  his  sloop,  returned  to  the  fleet,  which  was 
lying  in  the  James  River  in  Virginia. 

In  the  end  piracy  wrought  its  own  cure.  As 
the  chances  on  the  Spanish  main  decreased,  the 
pillaging  of  English  commerce  soon  reached  a 
point  beyond  all  endurance.  By  the  year  1700 
the  South  Carolinians  began  to  export  rice,  and, 
having  vessels  of  their  own,  they  suddenly  saw 
piracy  in  a new  light.  A vessel  had  fitted  out 
at  Havana  with  a mongrel  crew  of  English, 
French,  Portuguese,  and  Indians,  who,  after  cap- 
turing several  Charleston  ships,  began  to  quarrel 
among  themselves  over  the  booty.  The  nine 
284 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

Englishmen  were  turned  adrift  in  a boat,  and, 
making  their  way  to  the  coast,  walked  overland 
to  Charleston,  where  tfyey  said  that  they  had 
been  shipwrecked,  a formal  statement  which  a 
few  years  before  would  have  been  entirely  satis- 
factory to  every  one.  But  they  soon  added  to  their 
knowledge  of  the  hypocrisy  of  human  nature. 
Several  of  them  were  recognized  by  Charleston 
captains  who  had  lost  ships ; and  they  were  all 
tried,  condemned,  and  seven  of  them  hung. 

Charleston  was  no  longer  a rendezvous,  and 
the  pirates  had  only  two  strongholds.  Providence 
Island  in  the  West  Indies  and  the  Cape  Fear 
River  in  North  Carolina.  Issuing  from  these 
shelters,  they  captured  within  four  years  more 
than  thirty  vessels  on  the  American  coast.  The 
clamor  against  them  was  now  so  great  that  the 
British  crown  issued  a proclamation  offering 
pardon  to  all  who  should  surrender  within 
twelve  months,  and  at  the  same  time  sent  ex- 
peditions to  suppress  them.  Captain  Woodes 
Rogers,  with  several  men-of-war,  attacked  Provi- 
dence Island  and  took  possession  of  it.  Most 
of  the  pirates,  when  they  saw  that  the  day  was 
against  them,  surrendered  and  accepted  the  par- 
don of  the  proclamation.  But  Steed  Bonnett, 
who  had  been  a man  of  education  and  wealth  in 
the  Barbadoes,  and  Richard  Worley,  still  held 
possession  of  the  Cape  Fear  River. 

285 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

South  Carolina  craved  the  honor  of  suppress- 
ing these  remnants  of  her  former  friends,  and 
Governor  Johnson  sent  out  William  Rhett,  who 
after  a sharp  aftion  captured  Steed  Bonnett  and 
his  crew  of  forty  men,  of  whom  all  but  one  were 
hung  and  buried  on  a shoal  below  high  water, 
beneath  what  is  now  Battery  Garden  at  Charles- 
ton. Johnson  himself  went  after-  Worley,  who 
fought  a battle  the  fury  of  which  it  is  prob- 
able that  no  romance  could  exaggerate.  The 
pirates  were  killed  or  disabled,  until  Wor- 
ley and  another  man  were  alone  left  standing, 
and  they  refused  to  surrender  until  they  were 
desperately  wounded.  They  were  carried  to 
Charleston,  where  their  captors,  with  sanftimo- 
nious  haste,  tried  and  executed  them  before  they 
could  die  of  their  wounds. 

In  1695  John  Archdale,  a well-informed, 
judicious  Quaker,  who  had  become  one  of  the 
proprietors,  came  out  to  be  governor  of  all 
Carolina  and  to  quiet  the  people.  One  might 
suppose  that  such  a man  would  never  be  able  to 
control  the  turbulent  colonists  ; but  he  succeeded 
to  perfeftion  where  all  others  had  failed.  The 
people  at  once  gave  him  their  confidence  and  sup- 
port, which  his  sincerity  and  discretion  enabled 
him  to  retain.  He  made  no  attempt  at  first  to 
force  the  colonists  to  accept  the  Huguenots  as 
citizens  ; but,  on  the  contrary,  he  disfranchised 
286 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

all  these  French  refugees  and  issued  writs  of 
eleftion  only  for  the  two  counties  which  contained 
the  English. 

Under  his  direftion  the  assembly  settled  the 
land  laws,  made  arrangements  for  payment  of 
the  quit-rents,  appointed  magistrates  for  hearing 
causes  between  the  settlers  and  the  Indians, 
built  public  roads,  'and  cut  passages  through  the 
marshes  to  shorten  the  distance  in  navigating 
the  thoroughfares  and  sounds.  He  attempted 
to  establish  a friendly  feeling  between  the  colo- 
nists and  the  Indians,  but  if  he  had  any  success 
in  this  it  was  only  temporary.  The  settlers 
were  determined  to  cheat  the  Indians  in  trade  at 
every  opportunity,  and  even  some  of  those  high 
in  office  were  interested  in  kidnapping  the  red 
men  to  be  sold  as  slaves  in  the  West  Indies. 

Archdale  had  no  intention  of  remaining  gov- 
ernor for  any  length  of  time.  He  had  come 
out  merely  to  quiet  the  colony,  and  he  returned 
in  1696.  In  the  same  year  that  he  returned 
the  Huguenots  were  given  equal  rights  with  the 
other  colonists  and  allowed  to  inherit  land. 

But  although  he  had  accomplished  a great 
deal  and  had  given  the  province  its  first  appear- 
ance of  prosperity,  so  that  in  the  next  fourteen 
years  there  were  only  four  governors,  he  could 
not  permanently  alter  the  causes  of  discord. 
Regular  and  more  orderly  government  con- 
287 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 


tinued  to  develop  under  the  impetus  he  had 
given  it,  but  the  disputes  and  faftions  continued 
for  a long  time.  In  1700  there  was  a contest 
between  the  upper  and  lower  houses  of  the  legis- 
lature. The  lower  house,  under  the  leadership 
of  Nicholas  Trott,  attempted  to  reduce  the 
upper  house  to  an  inferior  position,  limiting 
it  to  a single  day  in  which  to  pass  the  bills 
sent  to  it,  and  to  a single  hour  in  which  to 
answer  messages.  In  fadt,  the  Carolinians 
undertook  to  shape  their  constitution  without 
regard  to  the  proprietors,  and  they  largely  suc- 
ceeded. 

In  1710  there  was  a small  civil  war.  Gibbes 
and  Broughton  each  claimed  the  office  of  gover- 
nor. Gibbes  appears  to  have  been  regularly 
elefted  to  the  office  by  the  upper  house,  and 
took  possession  of  the  government.  But  Brough- 
ton and  his  friends,  declaring  that  Gibbes  had 
been  elected  by  bribery,  assembled  at  a planta- 
tion and  marched  to  Charleston,  which  seems 
at  that  time  to  have  been  a walled  town  with  a 
drawbridge,  like  the  defence  to  an  ancient  castle. 
Gibbes,  being  in  possession  within  the  walls, 
refused  to  let  down  the  drawbridge  at  the  de- 
mand of  Broughton,  who  thereupon  rode  around 
the  walls  with  his  party  and  tried  to  effeft  an 
entrance  at  what  was  called  the  bastion.  De- 
feated in  this,  he  returned  to  the  drawbridge, 
288 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

and  after  a struggle  succeeded  in  entering  the 
town. 

Both  parties,  being  now  inside,  seemed  un- 
willing to  come  to  blows,  and  there  was  more 
manoeuvring  and  tearing  of  ensigns  than  fight- 
ing. In  the  end  Broughton’s  men,  after  pro- 
claiming him  governor,  retired  to  a tavern,  and  it 
was  agreed  that  Gibbes  should  remain  governor 
until  the  proprietors  settled  the  controversy. 

The  proprietors  rejected  the  claims  of  both 
Gibbes  and  Broughton,  and  appointed  as  gover- 
nor Charles  Craven,  a gallant  and  attradlive 
young  Englishman,  who  figures  as  the  hero  of 
Simms’s  novel,  “ Yemassee.”  He  soon  had  to 
conduft  the  province  through  a terrible  war  with 
the  Indians, — the  Tuscaroras  in  North  Carolina 
and  the  Yemassees  nearer  to  Charleston.  This 
war  is  made  the  subjeft  of  Simms’s  novel, 
which  is  written  somewhat  in  the  style  of 
Cooper.  The  story  is  by  no  means  unskilfully 
told,  and  is  exceedingly  valuable  for  its  descrip- 
tions of  the  country,  the  schemes  of  the  Span- 
iards in  Florida  to  assist  the  Indians,  and  the 
strange  tribes  by  which  the  colonists  were  sur- 
rounded. 

The  Indians,  of  whom  there  were  more  than 
twenty  tribes  in  the  near  neighborhood,  were 
indeed  an  important  influence  in  the  develop- 
ment of  South  Carolina.  For  many  years  their 
Vol.  II— 19  289 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

numbers  were  so  great  that  a little  unity  and 
skilful  leadership  would  have  enabled  them  at 
almost  any  time  to  annihilate  the  colony,  and  on 
several  occasions  they  came  very  near  accom- 
plishing it.  The  colonists  saved  themselves 
only  by  extreme  vigilance,  presents  and  bribes, 
and  setting  tribe  against  tribe. 

Besides  compelling  South  Carolina  to  become 
a province  of  one  fortified  town,  the  Indians 
soon  wrought  a change  in  its  government.  The 
contest  with  the  Yemassees  was  so  serious  that 
in  the  midst  of  their  difficulties  the  people  sent 
to  the  proprietors  for  aid,  but  it  was  refused. 
The  proprietors  could  not  assist  the  province 
without  involving  their  English  estates  in  debt, 
and  this  they  were  unwilling  to  do ; for  they 
had  already,  they  thought,  lost  too  much  money 
in  Carolina.  The  agent  of  the  colony  there- 
upon applied  to  the  king  for  relief,  and  it 
was  suggested  that  the  proprietorship  be  abol- 
ished and  that  the  colony  be  turned  into  a royal 
government  under  the  direft  control  of  the 
crown. 

This  proposition  soon  received  support  from 
many  quarters.  The  colonists  favored  it  with 
enthusiasm,  because  they  believed  the  king 
would  be  able  to  protect  them  from  the  Indians 
as  well  as  from  the  Spaniards  and  pirates.  The 
English  merchants  saw  in  it  an  increase  of  their 
290 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

trade  to  Carolina,  because  the  people  would  be 
more  prosperous  and  would  probably  be  pre- 
vented by  the  king  from  issuing  paper  money, 
the  depreciation  of  which  was  a great  loss  to  all 
who  dealt  with  them.  Public  men  and  states- 
men saw  in  it  a better  prospeCt  for  the  spread 
of  the  British  empire ; for  they  feared  that  if 
Carolina  remained  in  the  weak  control  of  the 
proprietors,  it  would  be  taken  by  the  Spaniards 
of  Florida. 

At  the  same  time  the  proprietors  succeeded  in 
making  themselves  more  unpopular  than  ever. 
Some  lands  taken  from  the  Yemassees  had  been 
given  by  the  assembly  to  some  Scotch-Irish 
settlers  who  had  been  induced  to  come  to  the 
colony  on  the  expectation  of  receiving  the  land. 
But  the  proprietors  claimed  the  exclusive  right 
of  selling  the  land,  and  had  it  surveyed  and  laid 
out  in  baronies  without  regard  to  the  Scotch- 
Irish,  some  of  whom  perished  from  starvation, 
and  the  rest  sought  refuge  in  the  Northern 
colonies. 

The  proprietors  also  repealed  a law  which 
allowed  elections  to  be  held  in  the  different 
parishes  instead  of  compelling  everybody  to 
come  to  Charleston  to  vote.  They  had  suc- 
ceeded in  winning  to  their  side  the  popular 
leader,  Nicholas  Trott,  and  had  made  him  chief- 
justice.  He  was  accused  by  the  people  of  a 
291 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

long  list  of  thirty-one  offences,  which  is  a 
striking  commentary  on  the  way  in  which  the 
colony  was  governed.  He  had  contrived,  a fee 
for  continuing  cases  from  one  term  to  another, 
he  afted  as  counsel  in  cases  pending  before  him, 
prepared  documents  the  validity  of  which  he 
afterwards  passed  upon  as  judge,  he  was  sole  in- 
cumbent of  the  Courts  of  Common  Pleas,  King’s 
Bench,  and  Vice-Admiralty,  and  he  was  also  a 
judge  of  the  Court  of  Chancery  ; so  that  no 
appeal  could  be  taken  to  any  one  of  these  courts 
without  his  granting  it  against  himself.  But  the 
proprietors,  in  answer  to  the  protest  of  the 
people,  not  only  continued  him  in  office,  but 
complimented  him  on  his  devotion  to  their 
interests. 

One  of  the  laws  which  was  repealed  by  the 
proprietors  was  certainly  a most  extraordinary 
one.  The  high-spirited  colonists  had  actually 
undertaken  to  levy  a duty  on  all  goods  imported 
into  the  province  from  Great  Britain.  Half  a 
century  afterwards  it  became  an  important  ques- 
tion whether  Great  Britain  had  a right  to  tax  the 
colonies,  but  here  was  a colony  taxing  Great 
Britain.  In  Maryland,  as  we  have  seen,  a clause 
of  the  charter  expressly  allowed  such  a tax  to 
be  levied,  although  the  colonists  never  succeeded 
in  afting  under  it.  The  Carolinians,  however, 
levied  the  tax  without  the  authority  of  any 
292 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

charter,  and  appear  to  have  met  with  some  slight 
success  in  executing  their  law,  which  was  the 
only  instance  of  a colonial  tariff  being  enforced 
against  the  manufactures  of  the  mother  country. 
Even  Massachusetts  never  went  so  far  as  this. 

The  enforcement  of  the  law  aroused  great 
indignation  among  the  English  merchants,  who 
were  now  more  than  ever  in  favor  of  a royal  gov- 
ernment which  would  put  a stop  to  such  high- 
handed measures.  With  the  colonists  the  law 
was  extremely  popular,  for  they  expeCted  the 
proceeds  of  the  tax  would  pay  the  expenses  of 
government  and  help  them  carry  on  their  wars 
with  the  Indians  and  Spaniards.  Its  repeal  by 
the  proprietors  was  considered  such  a grievance 
that  they  determined  to  deny  the  right  of  the 
proprietors  to  repeal  any  of  their  laws.  In 
these  proceedings,  besides  Trott  and  Rhett, 
we  find  the  familiar  South  Carolina  names  of 
Bull,  Barnwell,  Butler,  and  Skrine. 

The  relations  between  England  and  Spain 
were  at  this  time  very  much  strained,  and  it 
was  known  that  a Spanish  expedition  was  pre- 
paring at  Havana  to  attack  South  Carolina. 
The  Carolinians  had  had  several  contests  with 
the  Spaniards  of  Florida,  in  which  they  had 
been  usually  successful  ; but  when  the  governor 
called  on  them  for  a subscription  to  resist  this 
attack,  he  was  told  that  the  duties  on  imports 
293 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

would  be  amply  sufficient,  because  the  people 
had  determined  to  enforce  this  law,  although  it 
had  been  repealed  by  the  proprietors,  and  in 
future  “ to  pay  no  regard  to  these  repeals.” 

The  governor,  Robert  Johnson,  thinking  it 
would  be  best  to  have  the  militia  ready,  re- 
quested the  field-officers  to  call  a general  meet- 
ing of  their  companies.  Meantime  the  mem- 
bers of  the  assembly  had  prepared  a plan  for 
revolting  from  the  allegiance  of  the  proprietors, 
and,  having  reduced  it  to  writing,  it  was  pre- 
sented at  the  meeting  of  the  militia  to  be  signed. 
They  readily  agreed  to  it,  and  soon  after  it  was 
signed  by  nearly  all  the  white  people  of  the 
colony;  and  on  the  28th  of  November,  1719, 
the  announcement  was  formally  made  to  the 
governor  that  the  people  had  decided  to  dis- 
pense with  the  proprietary  authority,  and  he 
was  requested  to  accept  the  office  of  governor 
from  them  on  behalf  of  the  king.  This  he  re- 
fused with  much  indignation,  and  the  contest 
began. 

The  assembly,  feeling  confident  of  the  sup- 
port of  the  whole  province,  passed  resolutions 
declaring  that  they  were  no  longer  an  assembly, 
but  a convention  of  the  people  to  preserve  the 
colony  until  his  majesty’s  pleasure  should  be 
made  known.  They  denied  the  authority  of 
the  proprietors  to  repeal  laws,  and  denied  also 
294 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 


the  authority  of  the  governor  and  his  council ; 
but  they  provided  that  an  address  should  be  sent 
to  the  governor,  asking  him  to  continue  the  ad- 
ministration until  the  king’s  decision  could  be 
made  known.  Arthur  Middleton,  the  head  of 
a family  afterwards  famous  in  the  history  of  the 
province,  was  president  of  the  convention,  and 
waited  on  Governor  Johnson  to  persuade  him 
to  comply. 

Middleton  argued  in  a manner  which  seems 
strangely  familiar,  because  it  was  in  the  same 
high-strung  tone  which  is  so  well  known  to  us 
in  the  history  of  nullification  and  secession  in 
South  Carolina.  The  governor  had  been  ap- 
proved by  the  king,  so  that  he  was  already  half 
a royal  governor  ; and  as  for  the  remaining  half, 
which  rested  on  the  proprietors,  that  had  been 
abolished  by  Middleton  and  his  friends.  The 
convention  representing  the  people  had  dis- 
owned the  proprietors,  and  would  not  aft  with 
them  on  any  account. 

It  was  a serious  predicament  for  Johnson.  If 
he  should  attempt  to  dissolve  the  convention 
and  dismiss  the  members  to  their  homes,  how 
was  he  to  obtain  money  and  militia  for  defence 
against  Spain?  On  the  other  hand,  if  he  allowed 
the  convention  to  exist,  was  he  not  faithless  to 
the  trust  the  proprietors  had  imposed  upon  him? 
Messages  and  answers  passed  between  him  and 
295 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

the  convention,  each  side  trying  to  gain  an  ad- 
vantage ; but  in  the  end  Johnson  took  the  only 
ground  he  could  in  honor  take,  and  declared  that 
he  had  been  appointed  by  the  proprietors,  and 
by  them  alone  could  he  be  dismissed.  He  issued 
a proclamation  dissolving  the  convention,  but 
the  document  was  torn  from  the  hands  of  the 
marshal  who  attempted  to  serve  it. 

The  convention  then  proceeded  to  complete 
the  revolution  by  elefting  James  Moore  gov- 
ernor. There  was  a grand  meeting  of  the 
militia  in  Charleston  in  the  market  square,  with 
flags  flying  in  the  forts  and  on  all  the  ships  in 
the  harbor.  Johnson,  arriving  in  the  town  and 
finding  all  these  preparations  for  proclaiming 
the  new  government,  had  the  courage,  single- 
handed,  to  oppose  them.  He  stormed  and 
threatened  punishments,  reasoned  and  expostu- 
lated, and  was  about  to  seize  with  his  own 
hands  the  commander,  when  the  militia  levelled 
their  muskets  at  him.  He  had  expefted  support 
from  some  of  the  people,  but  not  a man  joined 
him.  The  revolution  seemed  to  be  universal, 
and  there  was  nothing  that  the  governor  could 
do  against  it. 

He  attempted  to  hold  together  the  old  gov- 
ernment, but  in  vain.  The  convention  pro- 
claimed Moore  governor,  and  set  to  work  form- 
ing a new  government,  modelled  on  those  in  the 
296 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

other  royal  colonies,  and  consisting  of  a gover- 
nor’s council  of  twelve  and  an  assembly  elefted 
by  the  people.  Laws  were  rapidly  passed,  and 
among  them,  of  course,  the  favorite  tariff  against 
goods  imported  from  England.  The  fortifica- 
tions were  repaired,  and  the  province  strength- 
ened in  every  way  to  resist  the  Spaniards.  Taxes 
were  levied  on  land  and  negroes,  and  a reallv 
vigorous  and  efficient  government  created,  show- 
ing how  natural  and  easy  such  work  always  is 
to  the  English  race. 

Meantime  the  Spanish  expedition  from  Ha- 
vana had  sailed,  and  Johnson  warned  the  revolu- 
tionists of  what  might  happen  if  they  attempted 
military  operations  without  lawful  authority. 
But  the  convention  was  confident,  and  the  Span- 
iards never  reached  Charleston.  They  chose 
first  of  all  to  attack  the  island  of  Providence, 
where  they  were  repulsed,  and  soon  after  a large 
part  of  the  fleet  was  lost  in  a storm. 

The  convention  was  completely  triumphant. 
Two  British  men-of-war  came  into  the  harbor, 
and  Johnson  immediately  procured  their  assist- 
ance. With  their  men  at  quarters  and  port- 
holes open,  they  lay  before  the  town,  and  John- 
son ordered  the  revolutionists  to  surrender  or  he 
would  batter  down  the  city  over  their  heads. 
But  the  convention  in  possession  of  the  forts 
and  bastions  of  the  little  stronghold  stood  ready 
297 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

at  their  guns,  and  not  a shot  came  from  the  men- 
of-war. 

It  was  a most  interesting  revolution,  so  suc- 
cessful, and  with  such  obvious  influence  on  the 
greater  revolution  of  the  continent  a little  more 
than  fifty  years  afterwards.  One  would  suppose 
that  the  British  government  would  have  in  some 
way  punished  or  rebuked  it ; but  while  it  was 
going  on.  Parliament  was  preparing  to  divest  the 
proprietors  of  all  their  rights  in  the  government 
as  well  as  in  the  soil  of  Carolina.  They  were 
given  seventeen  thousand  five  hundred  pounds 
in  compensation,  and  the  arrears  of  quit-rents  due 
from  the  colonists  were  purchased  for  five  thou- 
sand pounds  more,  making  in  all  twenty-two 
thousand  five  hundred  pounds,  which  probably 
very  nearly  compensated  them  for  their  outlay 
on  the  province,  without  giving  them  any  of  the 
profits  which  they  expefted  to  reap  from  their 
vast  territory  stretching  all  the  way  to  the  Pacific. 

Some  of  the  resemblances  between  this  revo- 
lution and  that  of  1776  are  worth  noting.  The 
two  were  conducted  in  very  much  the  same  way. 
Both  of  them  began  with  complaints,  remon- 
strances, and  arguments,  dignified  and  earnest 
for  the  most  part,  but  interspersed,  when  occa- 
sion offered,  with  very  decided  and  riotous 
aftion.  Both  were  concerned  with  the  ques- 
tion of  taxation,  although  in  a somewhat  differ- 
298 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 


ent  way.  The  South  Carolinians  claimed  the 
right  not  only  to  regulate  their  own  internal 
taxes,  but  to  tax  at  their  pleasure  the  goods  im- 
ported from  the  mother  country.  Both  were 
an  uprising  of  the  people,  represented  by  a 
body  which  in  one  instance  was  called  a con- 
vention and  in  the  other  a Continental  Congress, 
and  in  both  instances,  when  the  revolution  was 
completed,  these  bodies  became  the  government 
of  the  country. 

In  the  South  Carolina  revolution  Arthur  Mid- 
dleton was  president  of  the  convention.  His 
son,  Henry  Middleton,  was  at  one  time  presi- 
dent of  the  Continental  Congress,  and  his  grand- 
son, Arthur  Middleton,  was  one  of  the  signers 
of  the  Declaration  of  Independence. 

The  British  government,  although  it  had  no 
inclination  to  punish  the  revolutionists,  would 
not  accept  Moore  as  the  governor.  General 
Francis  Nicholson,  a passionate,  violent,  but 
at  the  same  time  generous  and  firm  man,  very 
much  like  the  typical  South  Carolinian,  was  ap- 
pointed in  1721,  and  delighted  everybody  by 
his  administration.  He  encouraged  literature 
and  religion,  and  under  his  administration  the 
Church  of  England  was  more  firmly  established 
in  the  province. 

The  Huguenots  in  time  showed  a decided 
preference  for  the  Episcopal  service  and  doc- 
299 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

trines,  and  the  old  Huguenot  church  now 
shown  to  visitors  in  Charleston  is  still  in  pos- 
session of  the  Episcopalians.  The  Huguenots 
joined  the  Church  of  England  in  South  Caro- 
lina very  much  as  the  Lutheran  Swedes  joined  it 
in  Pennsylvania,  where  the  old  Swedish  churches 
are  now  all  Episcopal. 

In  faCt,  wherever  the  Huguenots  appeared  in 
America  they  were  more  easily  absorbed  among 
the  English  population  than  any  other  foreign 
element  that  has  ever  come  to  us.  They  rap- 
idly joined  the  English  religious  bodies  in  pref- 
erence to  their  own,  and  within  two  or  three 
generations  all  their  distinctive  characteristics 
except  their,  names  had  disappeared.  The  con- 
sequence of  this  and  of  their  willingness  to 
intermarry  has  been  that  no  other  foreign  ele- 
ment except  the  English  can  trace  its  blood  in 
so  many  distinguished  and  prominent  people  in 
the  United  States.  They  have  been  in  this 
respeCt  the  reverse  of  the  Germans,  who,  by 
attempting  to  keep  up  their  nationality  and 
segregating  themselves  from  the  rest  of  the 
people,  have  diminished  their  opportunity  for 
usefulness  to  the  nation. 

But  the  most  important  benefit  Nicholson 
conferred  on  the  province  was  his  treaty  with 
the  Cherokee  Indians.  He  smoked  their  pipes 
and  exchanged  with  them  that  eloquence  about 
300 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

friendship  as  enduring  as  the  sun  and  stars  which 
is  usually  effe&ive,  or  at  least  suitable,  on  such 
occasions.  He  regulated  the  standard  of  weights 
and  measures  by  which  trade  with  them  was 
carried  on,  and  appointed  an  agent  to  superin- 
tend their  intercourse  with  the  whites.  In  the 
same  way  he  concluded  a treaty  with  the  Creeks. 

Soon  after,  in  the  year  1730,  Sir  Alexander 
Cumming  came  out  from  England  further  to 
pacify  the  Southern  Indians,  with  whom  the 
French  had  begun  to  tamper  as  part  of  their 
plan  of  getting  control  of  the  Mississippi  Val- 
ley behind  the  English  settlements.  They  were 
already  beginning  to  enter  this  valley  on  the 
north  by  way  of  Canada  and  the  Great  Lakes 
and  on  the  south  from  the  Gulf  of  Mexico. 
Cumming  penetrated  the  Indian  country  three 
hundred  miles  west  of  Charleston,  held  many 
conferences,  and  returned  in  triumph  with  a 
crown  decorated  with  scalps  and  eagle  tails. 
Six  chiefs  accompanied  him  to  England,  were 
entertained  and  petted  at  court,  and  returned  to 
their  people  with  accounts  of  the  wonders  they 
had  seen. 

When  the  chiefs  returned  they  were  accom- 
panied by  Robert  Johnson,  who  had  been  ap- 
pointed governor  to  take  the  place  of  General 
Nicholson.  Although  as  the  last  governor  under 
the  proprietors  he  had  resisted  the  revolution  to 


3m 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

the  utmost  of  his  ability,  he  was  much  respeCted 
by  the  people,  who  knew  that  he  had  aCted  from 
a sense  of  duty  and  honor.  They  were  not 
averse  to  having  him  over  them  again,  and  his 
administration,  like  that  of  nearly  all  the  gover- 
nors after  the  revolution  of  17 19,  was  quiet  and 
satisfactory.  After  his  death  a monument  with 
a very  laudatory  inscription  was  ereCted  to  his 
memory  in  St.  Philip’s  Church. 

The  success  of  the  negotiations  with  the 
Indians  was  a great  relief  to  the  Carolinians 
and  was  the  beginning  of  their  prosperity.  In- 
stead of  living  in  terror  of  their  lives,  within 
easy  distance  of  escape  to  a walled  town,  they 
could  now  spread  out  in  all  directions.  The 
Spaniard  in  Florida  was  their  only  remaining 
enemy,  and  he  was  not  so  close  and  persistent 
as  the  Indian  had  been. 

This  peace  which  Nicholson  and  Cumming 
secured  lasted  for  nearly  thirty  years,  or  until 
the  breaking  out  of  the  French  and  Indian  war 
after  Braddock’s  defeat  in  1755.  During  those 
years  the  South  Carolinians  pushed  their  settle- 
ments westward  for  a distance  of  over  a hundred 
miles.  The  pioneers  in  this  advance  were  the 
Indian  traders  and  the  cattlemen  or  graziers. 
The  cattlemen  occupied  the  districts  where  cane 
grew,  the  open  grassy  spaces  in  the  forest,  and 
also  pastured  their  cattle  in  the  woods.  Places 
302 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

were  established  for  bringing  the  cattle  together, 
called  cow-pens,  a word  which  often  occurs  in 
the  history  of  the  province,  and  has  given  a name 
to  one  of  the  battle-fields  of  the  Revolution. 

The  life  of  these  men  bore  a slight  resem- 
blance to  that  of  the  cowboys  of  the  Western 
plains  in  our  own  time.  The  traders,  usually 
Scotch-Irishmen,  advanced  still  farther,  and  were 
types  of  those  curious  characters  who  love  iso- 
lation and  a wild  life.  Some  of  them  pene- 
trated beyond  the  line  of  the  Alleghany  Moun- 
tains, hundreds  of  miles  from  the  settlements, 
where  they  lived  alone  among  the  Indians  with 
their  squaw  wives  and  the  other  pleasures  of 
savage  existence.  One  of  them  is  said  to  have 
boasted  that  he  had  upwards  of  seventy  children 
and  grandchildren  among  the  Indians. 

This  peace  with  the  Indians  followed  some- 
few  years  after  the  complete  suppression  of  the 
pirates  ; and  as  the  Indian  peace  gave  the  Caro- 
linians the  freedom  of  the  West,  so  the  suppres- 
sion of  the  pirates  gave  them  the  freedom  of  the 
ocean.  They  were  now  at  liberty  to  develop 
themselves  and  enjoy  the  chief  advantages  of 
their  situation  ; for  until  the  pirates  were  sup- 
pressed their  discovery  that  rice  would  grow  in 
the  swamp  lands  was  of  very  little  use. 

The  cultivation  of  rice  had  been  introduced 
by  Thomas  Smith,  who  was  a landgrave  under 
3°3 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

the  Locke  constitution  and  a governor  of  the 
colony.  He  had  been  in  Madagascar,  where  he 
had  seen  rice  growing  in  low  ground,  and  he 
had  long  been  convinced  that  it  would  grow  in 
Carolina.  One  day,  about  the  year  1693,  a 
vessel  from  Madagascar,  in  distress,  put  into 
Charleston  harbor,  and  the  captain,  who  was 
an  old  acquaintance  of  Smith’s,  inquired  for 
him.  In  the  course  of  their  conversation  they 
talked  about  rice,  and  when  Smith  asked  for 
some,  the  cook  of  the  vessel  furnished  him  with 
a small  bag  of  it,  which  he  planted  in  the  back 
of  his  garden.  It  grew,  and  the  crop  produced 
was  distributed  among  other  people  to  make  the 
same  experiment,  which  in  every  instance  was 
successful.  Rice,  negro  slavery,  and  the  ex- 
treme partiality  which  the  British  government 
showed  towards  the  colony  were  the  foundations 
of  its  fortunes. 

The  favor  and  encouragement  which  the 
British  government  displayed  were  quite  ex- 
traordinary. Massachusetts  was  also  a royal 
province,  but  the  people  were  ground  down  and 
oppressed  by  the  crown  until  they  became  in 
time  the  most  inflammable  revolutionists  on  the 
continent.  But  every  favor  that  could  be  shown 
a colony  w'as  shown  to  South  Carolina.  The  re- 
striftions  on  colonial  trade  were  waived  for  her 
benefit,  and  she  was  allowed  to  send  her  rice 

304 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

dire&ly  to  any  port  south  of  Cape  Finisterre, 
on  the  northwest  coast  of  France.  Parliament 
allowed  her  a bounty  on  hemp.  The  arrears  of 
quit-rents  which  had  been  bought  from  the  pro- 
prietors by  the  crown  were  all  remitted,  the 
king  sent  out  as  a present  seventy  pieces  of 
cannon,  and  when  Charleston  was  half  destroyed 
by  a fire.  Parliament  voted  twenty  thousand 
pounds  to  be  distributed  among  the  sufferers. 
The  province  was  allowed,  and  even  encour- 
aged, to  issue  bills  of  credit,  and  men-of-war 
were  stationed  on  the  coast  for  the  special  pro- 
tection of  her  trade. 

It  seems  rather  difficult  at  first  to  understand 
why  there  should  have  been  so  much  partiality 
shown  South  Carolina.  But  the  English  aristoc- 
racy and  governing  classes  had  always  been  more 
interested  in  the  Southern  colonies  than  in  the 
Northern  ones.  The  Northern  colonies  were 
largely  settled  by  Puritans,  Quakers,  and  other 
dissenters,  and  were  believed  to  have  a cold 
climate,  forbidding  scenery,  and  to  be  suitable 
only  for  shopkeepers  and  petty  occupations. 
The  great  plantations,  country  life,  and  genial 
climate  of  the  South  were  more  attradlive  ; and 
as  late  as  the  time  of  our  civil  war,  the  English 
upper  classes  took  sides  with  the  Confederate 
States  largely  because  their  people  were  sup- 
posed to  live  like  country  gentlemen. 

Vol.  ii. — 20  305 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 


The  original  proprietors  of  Carolina  having 
been  men  of  the  highest  distinction  and  influence 
in  the  Cavalier  or  high  tory  party,  and  having 
surrendered  their  province  to  the  crown  without 
a struggle,  naturally  left  an  inheritance  of  favor 
for  Carolina,  which  was  continued  through 
generations  of  men  of  influence  in  the  govern- 
ment, and  it  is  probable  that  the  Carolinians 
themselves  were  wise  enough  to  cultivate  this 
advantage  to  the  utmost.  They  resorted  to 
England,  and  passed  to  and  fro  more  than  the 
people  of  any  other  colony.  The  children  of 
people  of  means  were  almost  invariably  sent  to 
England  for  their  education.  English  books 
were  read,  English  clothes  worn,  and  English 
habits  and  customs  reproduced,  especially  in  the 
country  life  of  the  planters.  As  the  life  of  the 
colony  was  all  centred  in  Charleston,  which  soon 
had  many  ships  and  a considerable  commerce, 
the  close  connection  with  the  mother  country 
was  easily  maintained,  and  the  route  which  ships 
from  England  followed  at  that  time,  by  way  of 
the  coast  of  Europe  and  the  Azores  and  Canary 
Islands,  was  much  shorter  to  Charleston  than  to 
New  York  or  Boston. 

The  English  merchants,  whose  influence  in 
British  politics  was  strong,  were  always  very 
fond  of  the  Charleston  people.  London, 
Bristol,  and  Liverpool  thought  they  saw  great 
306 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

opportunities  in  South  Carolina.  They  encour- 
aged the  slave-trade,  and  assisted  the  planters 
with  credit  and  in  other  ways  to  purchase  slaves, 
because  the  more  slaves  the  larger  the  plantations 
and  the  greater  the  consumption  of  British 
goods. 

So  the  five  or  six  hundred  wooden  houses  of 
which  Charleston  was  composed  began  to  give 
place  to  brick  mansions  and  stores  of  a some- 
what imposing  appearance,  and  the  walls, 
bastion,  and  drawbridge  became  of  less  impor- 
tance. The  plans  which  the  proprietors  had 
tried  so  often  for  coaxing  immigrants  into  the 
province  were  renewed ; but  the  reports  of  the 
large  numbers  who  came  must  be  scanned  closely, 
and  it  is  also  necessary  to  investigate  what  hap- 
pened to  them  after  they  arrived. 

John  Peter  Pury,  of  Neufchatel,  Switzerland, 
visited  Carolina,  and,  of  course,  was  charmed. 
He  entered  into  a contrail  with  the  government 
to  bring  in  Swiss  immigrants,  but  they  sickened 
and  died  very  fast,  and  those  who  survived  spent 
their  time  in  cursing  Pury  for  the  hardships  of 
their  lot.  The  Scotch-Irish  immigrants  went 
through  similar  experiences,  and,  in  truth,  all 
white  people  had  to  pass  through  a very  severe 
ordeal  before  they  were  acclimatized.  The 
negro,  on  the  other  hand,  was  acclimatized  at 
once ; and  the  sick  and  failing  whites  were  all 

307 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 


the  more  tempted  to  encourage  the  slave-trade, 
because  to  obtain  credit  with  a merchant  for  a 
cheap  negro  to  do  their  hard  work  was  a matter 
of  life  and  death  to  them. 

And  now  began  the  process  which  supplied 
an  enemy  to  take  the  place  of  the  Indian  and 
keep  the  South  Carolinian  keyed  up  to  that  high- 
spirited  imperiousness  which  always  comes  to 
men  who  live  with  arms  by  their  sides,  in  daily 
and  nightly  fear  of  their  lives.  Negro  slavery 
in  connection  with  the  rice  and  indigo  planta- 
tions became  extremely  profitable.  Capital  in- 
vested in  planting  and  negroes  would  often, 
under  favorable  conditions,  double  itself  in 
three  or  four  years.  A vigorous  negro  cost 
about  forty  pounds,  or  two  hundred  dollars,  and 
after  a year’s  labor  usually  paid  for  himself. 

After  the  revolution  of  1719  and  the  orderly 
settling  of  the  royal  government,  slaves  were 
imported  in  great  numbers,  until  they  outnum- 
bered the  whites  almost  three  to  one.  They 
were  not  like  the  negroes  we  now  see  in  the 
South,  and  still  less  like  the  Northern  negroes, 
tamed  by  nearly  two  hundred  years’  contaft  with 
civilization  and  a large  infusion  of  white  blood. 
They  were  pure  Congo  savages,  fresh  from  the 
African  jungle,  with  their  fetish  worship,  their 
wild  dances,  and  their  incomprehensible  jargon 
which  they  called  language.  They  were  quick 
308 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

to  learn  certain  things,  and  rapidly  adopted  the 
white  man’s  dress  and  many  of  his  ways.  But 
they  remained  strange  creatures  for  a long  time, 
and  it  is  not  likely  that  there  was  much  change 
until  the  second  generation. 

The  lash  of  the  overseer,  the  efforts  of  good 
people  to  Christianize  him,  contact  with  civili- 
zation, and  a large  infusion  of  white  blood  into 
his  veins  have  been  among  the  chief  means 
which  have  changed  the  negro,  and  for  a hun- 
dred years  and  more  he  has  been  mild  enough ; 
but  in  his  untamed  original  condition  in  South 
Carolina  he  was  a continual  source  of  terror  to  the 
English  colonists,  whom  he  so  far  outnumbered, 
and  who  knew  all  the  details  of  the  terrible  slave 
insurreftions  in  the  West  Indies. 

Of  large  stature;  muscular;  not  only  uninjured 
by  the  climate,  but  stimulated  and  strengthened 
by  it ; quickly  becoming  familiar  with  the  effeft 
and  use  of  fire-arms,  and  with  easy  access  to 
such  weapons,  as  well  as  to  the  axes  and  tools 
used  in  his  labor,  it  is  little  wonder  that  his 
masters  were  uneasy.  He  was  by  no  means  an 
inferior  fighting  man,  and  in  this  respeft  was 
more  than  a match  for  many  of  the  Indians. 
Simms,  in  his  novel,  “ Yemassee,”  describes  the 
slaves  pursuing  some  of  the  inferior  tribes  of 
Indians  through  the  woods  and  smashing  their 
heads  with  clubs.  The  imported  negro  was 
3°9 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

more  of  a fighting  man  and  more  dangerous  than 
his  descendants,  and  when  the  importation  was 
prohibited  it  became  safe  to  treat  the  slaves  more 
mildly. 

During  the  early  days  of  the  colony  a regular 
watch  and  ward  was  kept  round  the  walls  of 
Charleston  to  guard  against  the  red  men  ; but 
now  that  that  danger  was  past,  a more  intense 
and  careful  watch  was  necessary  for  protection 
against  the  blacks.  The  walls  round  the  town 
were  of  no  avail,  for  the  negroes  were  every- 
where,— in  the  houses  of  the  town  as  servants, 
on  the  streets,  and  on  the  plantations.  Every 
man,  woman,  and  child  must  become  a watch- 
man and  guard,  and  the  whole  community 
turned  itself  into  an  organized  militia.  Slaves 
could  not  leave  the  plantation  to  which  they  be- 
longed without  a ticket,  and  all  white  persons 
were  authorized  to  disperse  meetings  of  them. 
A slave  found  on  the  road  could  be  stopped, 
examined,  and,  if  necessary,  whipped  on  the 
spot.  If  he  resisted  punishment,  it  was  lawful  to 
kill  him.  The  white  men  all  went  armed  to 
church,  as  in  the  early  days  of  Massachusetts  ; 
and  for  any  one  to  fail  to  give  notice  of  the  slight- 
est symptom  of  disaffection  in  a slave,  no  matter 
to  whom  he  belonged,  was  a heinous  offence. 

A justice  of  the  peace  and  three  freemen  had 
the  power  to  inquire  into  all  crimes  committed 
310 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 


by  slaves,  and  the  judge  could  order  death  to  be 
inflifted  as  a punishment  in  any  mode  he  thought 
proper.  Slaves  were  incapable  of  giving  evi- 
dence, and  were  not  allowed  counsel  for  their 
defence.  There  was  no  marriage  among  them, 
and  they  lived  in  irregular  association  like 
animals,  which,  it  was  supposed,  tended  to  in- 
crease their  numbers,  to  the  profit  of  their 
master.  They  were  forbidden  to  learn  to  write, 
and  could  neither  buy,  sell,  nor  hire  horses, 
nor  travel  in  companies  of  more  than  seven. 
About  the  only  mitigation  in  their  condition  was 
that  they  were  allowed  on  Sunday  to  work  for 
themselves. 

That  they  were  treated  with  extreme  cruelty, 
the  result  largely  of  the  terror  their  numbers 
inspired,  is  unquestioned,  and  it  was  unsafe  for 
any  one  to  intercede  for  them.  Crevecceur,  in  his 
“ Letters  from  an  American  Farmer,”  tells  of 
a clergyman  who,  having  recently  come  to  South 
Carolina,  ventured  to  remonstrate  with  the  peo- 
ple on  their  treatment  of  the  slaves,  and  was 
promptly  informed  by  his  congregation,  “ Sir, 
we  pay  you  a genteel  salary  to  read  us  the  pray- 
ers of  the  liturgy  and  to  explain  to  us  such  parts 
of  the  Gospel  as  the  rule  of  the  Church  direfts, 
but  we  do  not  want  you  to  teach  us  what  to  do 
with  our  blacks.” 

Crevecceur  also  describes  finding  one  day  in 

3 ii 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

the  woods  a negro  exposed  alive  in  a cage  to  die 
of  hunger  and  thirst.  The  cage  was  hung  in  a 
tree,  and  sitting  on  it  was  a flock  of  buzzards, 
which  had  already  pecked  out  his  eyes  and  were 
tearing  the  flesh  from  his  arms,  while  the  blood 
streamed  down  on  the  ground.  This,  as  Cr£ve- 
coeur  was  afterwards  informed,  was  the  punish- 
ment inflifted  for  the  murder  of  an  overseer, 
and  its  cruelty  was  defended  as  absolutely  neces- 
sary to  proteft  the  community. 

But  Crevecoeur  is  probably  wrong  in  describ- 
ing him  as  in  a cage.  It  is  more  likely  that  he 
was  hung  in  chains,  as  it  was  called,  which  was 
a common  way  at  that  time  of  dealing  with  no- 
torious criminals,  although  they  were  not  usually 
hung  in  chains  alive.  It  seems  strange,  from 
what  we  know  of  the  habits  of  vultures,  that  they 
had  begun  to  tear  the  negro  before  he  was  dead. 

In  many  instances,  of  course,  the  slaves  were 
well  treated.  Henry  Laurens,  Pringle, and  other 
planters  were  well  known  as  kind  masters,  and 
they  were  rewarded  by  a great  increase  in  the 
number  of  their  blacks ; for  when  used  with 
kindness  and  not  overworked  they  bred  much 
more  rapidly ; and  this  argument  in  favor  of 
mild  treatment  was  one  of  the  few  which  it  was 
safe  to  use. 

The  Spaniards  at  St.  Augustine,  knowing  well 
the  condition  of  things  in  South  Carolina,  made 
312 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

every  effort  to  incite  an  insurrection  among  the 
slaves  or  to  entice  them  away  from  the  prov- 
ince. They  offered  them  complete  freedom 
and  protection  if  they  would  come  to  Florida  ; 
and  they  had  a regiment  recruited  in  this  way 
from  the  Carolina  slaves,  whom  they  dressed 
in  full  uniform  of  bright  colors,  which  the  darky 
loves,  and  gave  them  equal  rank  and  pay  with 
the  Spanish  soldiers.  That  they  were  not  more 
successful  in  these  methods  is  proof  of  the  sharp 
watchfulness  of  the  Carolinians,  or,  as  the  Car- 
olinians would  explain  it,  of  the  entire  content- 
ment of  the  negroes  with  their  condition. 

But  in  1740  what  every  one  had  long  expefted 
finally  happened.  A number  of  negroes  at 
Stono  attacked  a warehouse  and,  having  killed 
the  men  in  charge,  took  possession  of  the  guns 
and  ammunition  which  it  contained,  and  imme- 
diately marched  towards  Florida,  burning  houses 
and  murdering  every  one  they  met  until  they  had 
killed  about  twenty  people.  They  were  con- 
tinually joined  by  the  slaves  of  the  districts  they 
passed  through,  and  had  proceeded  some  dis- 
tance when,  in  passing  near  a Presbyterian 
church  where  the  armed  congregation  was  as- 
sembled, some  one  gave  the  alarm. 

The  men  from  the  church  pursued  the  slaves, 
and,  finding  them  in  an  open  field  feasting  and 
dancing  and  drunk  with  rum  which  they  had 
3i3 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 


obtained  from  the  plantations,  at  once  attacked 
them.  They  were  easily  dispersed,  many  of 
them  killed  on  the  spot,  and  a terrible  example 
made  of  the  leaders  who  were  captured. 

South  Carolina  and,  indeed,  the  whole  South 
never  forgot  this  and  some  other  insurrections. 
The  Carolinians  redoubled  their  vigilance,  and 
rangers  were  employed  to  patrol  the  frontiers. 
The  dread  of  these  servile  insurrections  became 
embedded  in  Southern  feeling,  and  in  the  days 
of  Clay  and  Webster  and  the  Missouri  Com- 
promise many  a speech  in  Congress  was  pointed 
with  an  allusion  to  it.  At  the  time  of  the  civil 
war  nothing  was  so  exasperating  to  the  people 
of  the  Confederacy  as  the  thought  that  the  abo- 
litionists of  the  North  were  attempting  to  bring 
upon  them  the  horrors  of  a universal  slave  rebel- 
lion. But,  as  we  all  know,  there  were  no  rebel- 
lions in  later  times,  and  in  the  civil  war  the 
fidelity  of  the  negroes  to  their  former  masters  was 
remarkable,  for  the  negro’s  blood  had  been  di- 
luted and  his  character  changed. 

The  gift  of  freedom  has,  however,  developed 
vices  in  him  which  were  unknown  in  colonial 
times.  He  had  not  then  the  mad  passion  for 
raping  white  women  and  children,  which  causes 
so  many  lynchings  in  the  South,  nor  did  he  show 
the  inordinate  criminal  instinCts  which  are  now 
his  characteristics. 


3H 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 


Besides  rice  and  indigo,  the  people,  as  they 
were  enabled  to  spread  backward  into  the  inte- 
rior of  the  country,  began  to  interest  themselves 
in  grazing,  and  to  cultivate  hemp,  wheat,  and 
corn,  and  cure  hams,  bacon,  and  beef.  They 
followed  the  lines  of  the  numerous  great  rivers, 
which  gave  them  easy  and  cheap  transportation 
for  all  their  produce  to  Charleston,  their  com- 
mon emporium  and  the  centre  of  all  their  life. 

Everything  was  made  easy  for  them  under  the 
extraordinary  favor  which  the  British  govern- 
ment lavished  on  its  pet  colony.  Lands  were 
given  free  of  quit-rents  for  the  first  ten  years, 
and  taxes  were  a mere  trifle.  The  mother  coun- 
try gave  new  settlers  a bounty  to  purchase  tools 
and  start  life  on  the  land  which  they  obtained 
for  nothing.  The  settler  then  proceeded  to 
procure  some  negroes  on  credit,  and  if  after  that, 
surrounded  by  an  abundance  of  game  and  fish, 
he  could  not  succeed,  it  was  certainly  his  own 
fault. 

The  merchants  both  in  England  and  in 
Charleston  were  very  indulgent  in  the  way  of 
credit,  and,  as  prosperity  was  increasing  and 
values  rising,  found  it  for  their  advantage.  They 
encouraged  the  people  to  buy  both  negroes  and 
goods  on  long  credit,  and  in  this  way  they 
greatly  stimulated  the  development  of  the 
country.  They  required  settlements  from  their 
3i5 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

customers  only  once  a year,  and  often  extended 
them  to  two  or  three  years  ; and  on  all  the  naval 
stores,  indigo,  hemp,  and  raw  silk  which  the 
colony  produced  the  mother  country  paid  a 
bounty. 

There  were  no  manufafturing  industries,  and 
they  were  not  desired  ; for,  with  bounties  on 
most  of  their  products,  the  people  preferred  to 
be  producers  of  raw  material.  Slave  labor  was 
not  suited  to  manufafturing,  and  white  labor 
was  high.  The  laws  of  the  British  Parliament 
forbidding  manufafturing  in  the  colonies  and  re- 
strifting  their  foreign  trade,  which  were  such  a 
source  of  irritation  in  the  Northern  colonies, 
especially  in  New  England,  were  regarded  with 
entire  indifference  by  the  Carolinians. 

From  the  point  of  view  of  Great  Britain, 
South  Carolina  was  the  ideal  colony,  fulfilling 
in  every  respeft  the  funftions  and  duties  of  a 
colony,  and  entitled  to  all  the  assistance  and 
favor  that  could  be  shown  her.  England  in- 
tended that  the  colonies  should  all  be  mere  pro- 
ducers of  raw  material,  and  buy  all  their  manu- 
faftured  goods  from  her,  and  at  the  same  time 
trade  with  foreign  nations  in  a way  to  help  on 
the  trade  of  the  mother  country.  This  was  the 
foundation  principle  of  her  colonial  policy,  the 
principle  that  built  up  the  colonies  and  finally 
lost  them  to  her.  If  the  colonies  would  accept 
316 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

the  principle,  she  promised  to  help  them  to 
great  prosperity,  and  in  the  case  of  South  Caro- 
lina she  certainly  made  good  her  word. 

South  Carolina  was  an  instance  which,  so  far 
as  it  goes,  justifies  the  theory  of  those  who  main- 
tain that  a community  may  become  prosperous, 
enlightened,  and  refined  by  the  cultivation  of 
the  soil  alone,  without  the  varied  industries  of 
manufadturing.  The  seventy  thousand  white 
men,  all  planters  and  farmers,  or  merchants  fur- 
nishing supplies  to  planters  and  farmers,  were 
by  the  time  of  the  Revolution  a most  united  and 
happy  people,  with  many  of  the  charadleristics 
of  intelligence  and  intense  patriotism  which 
charadterized  the  people  of  Massachusetts,  much 
easier  and  more  polished  in  their  manners,  and 
more  familiar  with  the  customs  of  Europe. 
There  was  probably  no  community  in  the  world 
where  such  a very  large  proportion  of  the  white 
people  had  means  and  leisure  to  enjoy  themselves 
and  cultivate  the  arts  of  life. 

They  were  wholly  engaged  in  agriculture,  but 
they  had  all  the  advantages  of  city  life,  for  every- 
thing centred  in  Charleston,  which  the  rivers 
and  roads  made  easy  of  access.  The  planters 
usually  lived  in  the  town,  visiting  their  planta- 
tions, which  were  in  charge  of  overseers,  only 
when  necessary,  and  some  whose  estates  were 
close  to  Charleston  dispensed  with  town  houses. 

3*7 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 


In  summer  every  one  congregated  in  the  town 
to  enjoy  the  sea-breeze,  and  for  four  or  five 
months  it  became  a very  lively  watering-place 
and  was  the  resort  of  invalids  from  the  West 
Indies. 

There  was  a society  for  the  promotion  of 
literature,  two  libraries,  and  several  temporary 
theatres  at  different  times  until  1793,  when  a 
permanent  one  was  established.  At  the  literary 
club,  clergymen  of  several  different  denomina- 
tions discussed  religious  topics  in  perfeft  har- 
mony. Music  was  carefully  cultivated  long 
before  much  attention  was  given  to  it  in  the  other 
colonies.  Josiah  Quincy,  who  visited  Charleston 
in  1773,  describes  an  amateur  concert  of  the 
St.  Cecilia  Society  at  which  two  hundred  and 
fifty  ladies  were  present,  and  both  men  and 
women  more  richly  dressed  than  in  the  North. 
And  if  there  were  any  deficiencies  in  this  civili- 
zation, the  Carolinians  themselves  were  not  con- 
scious of  them. 

The  houses  were  usually  of  brick,  with  some 
pretension  to  architecture,  and  surrounded  by 
large  verandas.  In  winter,  dancing  assemblies 
were  held  every  two  weeks,  and  there  were 
dinner  parties,  balls,  and  amateur  concerts  in- 
numerable. Sports  were  fashionable, — fox- 
hunting, shooting,  horse-racing,  foot-ball,  and 
also  bear-  and  bull-baiting. 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

These  pleasures  were  often  interrupted  by 
terrible  epidemics  of  small-pox,  yellow  fever, 
and  other  diseases,  which  are  obscurely  described. 
Charleston  was  sometimes  almost  depopulated, 
and  at  times  many  of  the  people  were  so  dis- 
couraged that  they  thought  of  deserting  the 
province.  But  in  spite  of  these  attacks  on  their 
happiness,  and  the  fires  and  hurricanes,  they  soon 
returned  to  their  occupations  and  amusements. 

There  was  a great  deal  of  gambling  and 
heavy  drinking.  The  latter  vice  was  common 
in  all  the  colonies;  but  the  climate  of  Carolina 
hastened  its  evil  effefts  on  the  constitution. 
Few  families  had  less  than  twenty  slaves  as  house 
servants.  Everybody  had  plenty  of  horses  and 
many  had  fine  carriages.  Hospitality  was 
boundless,  and  on  many  of  the  plantations  the 
slaves  had  standing  orders  to  bring  in  any  re- 
spectable stranger  they  saw  passing  on  the  roads. 

The  plantation-house,  surrounded  by  its 
stables,  barns,  and  negro  quarters,  often  looked 
like  a small  village.  Bathed  in  the  soft,  indolent 
sunlight,  in  the  midst  of  luxurious  vegetation, 
the  trees  filled  with  mocking-birds,  the  horses 
and  cattle  wandering  everywhere,  and  hundreds 
of  blacks  with  their  songs  and  irresistible  humor 
breaking  forth  at  every  moment,  it  was  a most  at- 
tractive scene,  in  which  many  a traveller  lingered 
long.  Some  of  the  plantations  were  laid  out  with 
3i9 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

handsome  grounds,  avenues  of  trees,  and  the  land- 
scape gardening  of  England. 

Edward  Middleton,  who  lived  in  the  province 
in  very  early  times,  planted  at  his  place,  called 
The  Oaks,  a fine  avenue  of  live-oak-trees,  which 
still  remains.  Another  place  of  the  Middleton 
family  is  described  as  having  in  front  of  the  house 
a spacious  basin,  probably  something  like  a foun- 
tain, in  the  midst  of  a green  lawn.  Back  of  the 
house  was  a walk  a thousand  feet  long,  on  each 
side  of  which  was  a grass-plot  ornamented  in  a 
serpentine  manner  with  flowers.  On  the  left 
was  a bowling-green,  and  at  a little  distance  a 
large  fish-pond  with  a mount  in  the  middle  of 
it  as  high  as  the  top  of  the  house,  and  on  the 
mount  a Roman  temple. 

Many  of  these  handsome  places  were  ruined 
by  the  British  in  the  Revolution.  They  were 
rebuilt  in  greater  magnificence,  but  were  all 
destroyed  in  the  civil  war  except  Drayton 
Hall,  which,  being  used  as  a hospital,  was  pre- 
served, and  is  still  shown  to  tourists  and  visitors 
from  Charleston. 

The  typical  South  Carolinian,  born  and  accli- 
matized in  the  province,  was  a man  of  rather 
large,  well-developed  frame,  the  result  of  good 
living,  open-air  life,  and  exercise  in  the  saddle. 
The  women  were  also  of  well-proportioned, 
rounded  figures,  less  inclined  to  the  slender, 
32° 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

delicate  type  than  in  the  Northern  colonies; 
and  it  has  been  sometimes  thought  that  the 
typical  South  Carolina  female  figure  can  be 
traced  in  their  remote  descendants  in  other 
States.  They  were  lively  and  bright,  took  an 
important  and  aftive  part  in  all  sorts  of  affairs, 
and  seem  to  have  had  a certain  ascendency  and 
superior  position  which  were  not  attained  by 
the  women  of  the  rest  of  the  country. 

We  read  of  women  managing  plantations; 
and  Mrs.  Izard  devoted  herself  to  the  introduc- 
tion of  silk  culture,  in  the  hope,  as  she  proudly 
said,  that  it  might  be  of  benefit  to  Carolina. 
Many  of  the  famous  gardens  in  and  near  Charles- 
ton which  were  so  much  admired  by  travellers 
were  the  result  of  the  skill  and  intelligence  of 
women.  Mrs.  Lambol,  Mrs.  Logan,  Mrs.  Lau- 
rens, and  Mrs.  Hopton  were  among  the  re- 
markable gardeners,  and  Mrs.  Logan  wrote  a 
book  on  gardening.  About  the  year  1745  Miss 
Eliza  Lucas,  afterwards  Mrs.  Charles  Cotes- 
worth  Pinckney,  after  several  years  of  careful 
experiments,  introduced  the  cultivation  of  in- 
digo, from  which  for  more  than  half  a century, 
until  it  was  superseded  by  cotton,  the  people  of 
the  province  enjoyed  very  profitable  returns. 

A great  many  varied  duties  necessarily  de- 
volved on  the  women  at  a plantation.  They 
took  care  of  the  sick  ; and  as  a plantation  of  any 
Vol.  11 — 21  321 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

pretensions  had  usually  two  or  three  hundred 
slaves,  this  was  by  no  means  a trifling  task. 
They  superintended  the  spinning  and  weaving 
of  cloth  and  the  cutting  and  making  of  all  the 
clothes  for  the  plantation,  and  they  usually  had 
a great  number  of  household  servants  to  look 
after.  They  learned  to  command  and  enforce 
obedience  among  savages.  They  had  to  train 
slaves  in  habits  of  order,  and  teach  them  the 
small  trades  and  occupations  which  were  essen- 
tial to  the  self-supporting  charafter  of  their  little 
community.  They  often  taught  their  own  chil- 
dren to  read  and  write.  Many  of  them  were 
very  zealous  in  giving  religious  and  moral  in- 
struftion  to  the  negroes,  teaching  them  to  read 
the  Bible,  though  not  to  write  ; and  to  this  cus- 
tom must  be  partially  credited  the  taming  and 
civilizing  of  the  blacks,  so  that  as  years  passed 
they  became  less  dangerous.  In  the  Revolution 
they  did  little  or  no  harm  to  their  masters,  and  in 
the  civil  war  often  saved  valuable  property  and 
befriended  their  former  masters  when  they  were 
at  the  mercy  of  invading  armies. 

Besides  these  duties,  which  were  especially 
assigned  to  the  women,  it  was  usually  important 
for  them  to  have  a thorough  understanding  of 
the  general  management  of  the  plantation;  for 
the  men  were  necessarily  often  absent,  and  it 
was  not  uncommon  for  a woman  to  be  left 
322 


1 


St.  James’s  Church 
Goose  Creek,  S.  C. 
Built  1 71 1 


Landgrav  i rates,  and  Caziques 

pretension  ually  two  or  three  hundred 

slaves,  fh  by  no  means  a trifling  task. 

b,i  1 1 1 spinning  and  weaving 
ot  :■  cutting  and  making  of  all  the 

plantation,  and  they  usually  had 
' »nber  household  servants  to  look 
bey  learned  to  command  and  enforce 
mice  among  savages.  They  had  to  train 
3 in  habits  ■ order,  arid  teach  them  the 
small  trades  and  occupations  which  were  essen- 
;al  to  the  self-supporting  charafter  of  their  little 
community.  They  often  taught  their  own  chil- 
dren to  read  and  write.  Many  of  them  were 
very  zealous  in  giving  religious  and  moral  in- 
stru&ion  to  the  negroes,  teaching  them  to  read 
the  Bible,  ’■hough  not  to  write;  and  to  this  cus- 
tom must  be  partially  credited  the  taming  and 
civilizing  of  the  blacks,  so  that  as  years  passed 
they  became  less  dangerous.  In  the  Revolution 
they  did  little  or  no  harm  to  their  masters,  and  in 
the  civil  war  often  saved  valuable  property  and 
befriended  their  former  masters  when  they  were 
at  the  mercy  of  invading  armies. 

Besides  these  duties,  which  were  especially 
assigned  to  the  women,  it  was  usually  important 
m u have  3f WS?o^i§BIi\Wj§r s tan di ng  of 
the  general  management' ol^Sie^plantation ; for 

UVi  iliuH 

the  men  were  necessarily  often  absent,  and  it 
was  not  uncommon  for  a woman  to  be  left 
322 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

alone  for  several  months  in  charge  of  a huge 
plantation,  with  hundreds  of  slaves,  and  no  white 
man  to  assist  her  but  the  overseer. 

It  seems  to  have  been  a more  varied  and  broad- 
ening life  than  has  been  generally  supposed,  and 
it  developed  important  qualities  in  both  the 
women  and  the  men.  Each  plantation  was  a 
little  kingdom  in  itself,  with  its  spinners, 
weavers,  blacksmiths,  carpenters,  coopers,  hos- 
pital service,  religion,  often  its  own  vessel,  and 
always  its  own  laws  and  customs. 

The  animosities  and  factions  which  had  been 
so  rife  under  the  proprietary  government  disap- 
peared long  before  the  time  of  the  Revolution, 
and  the  white  population  were  extremely  homo- 
geneous and  united,  imperious  in  temper,  de- 
cided in  opinion  and  judgment,  and  capable  of 
prompt,  unanimous  aftion.  They  loved  Great 
Britain  and  the  British  government,  which  en- 
couraged and  petted  them,  and  we  look  in  vain 
for  any  of  those  bitter  complaints  and  quarrels 
which  were  so  prominent  in  the  other  colonies. 
The  history  of  South  Carolina,  although  an 
important  community,  is  in  consequence  very 
brief,  as  the  history  of  prosperity  and  content- 
ment always  is. 

Having  such  a strong  and  interested  affedtion 
for  the  mother  country,  and  always  maintaining 
such  close  and  constant  intercourse  v/ith  her,  it 
323 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

might  be  supposed  that  the  Carolinians  would 
be  slow  to  take  part  against  the  stamp  afts  and 
tea  afts  which  brought  on  the  Revolution,  or 
that,  at  least,  there  would  be  many  tories  among 
them.  But,  on  the  contrary.  South  Carolina  was 
the  first  colony  outside  of  New  England  to  send 
delegates  to  the  Congress  which  met  in  New 
York  to  resist  the  stamp  aft.  When  after- 
wards the  East  India  Company  shipped  tea  to 
all  the  colonies,  the  cargoes  sent  to  Charleston 
were  stored  and  the  merchants  forbidden  to  sell 
them. 

In  Boston,  as  we  all  know,  the  tea  was  thrown 
overboard,  and,  as  a punishment  for  this,  the 
British  Parliament  passed  an  aft  closing  the  har- 
bor of  that  town,  which  in  effeft  destroyed  its 
commerce.  Afts  of  Parliament  were  also  passed 
placing  the  government  of  the  province  almost 
completely  in  the  hands  of  the  king,  and  pro- 
viding that  persons  indifted  for  murder  could  be 
sent  to  England  for  trial.  When  Massachusetts, 
finding  her  trade  ruined  and  her  people  in  want 
and  suffering,  called  on  the  other  colonies  to  stand 
by  her,  and  by  refusing  to  import  English  goods 
bring  the  Parliament  to  terms.  South  Carolina 
promptly  complied.  A meeting  was  called, — 
not  a mere  meeting  of  delegates,  but  a mass- 
meeting of  all  the  people  of  the  province,  which 
assembled  in  Charleston,  July  6,  I 774,  and  voted 

324 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

unanimously  to  support  the  people  of  Massa- 
chusetts Bay. 

The  Carolinians  on  this  occasion  were  not 
only  prompt  and  unanimous,  but  their  ideas  on 
the  subjeft  were  perfectly  clear  and  definite; 
and,  indeed,  Carolina  opinion,  whether  right  or 
wrong,  always  had  the  merit  of  definiteness. 
They  were  not  in  the  least  injured  by  the  afls 
of  Parliament.  They  were  still  enjoying  its 
favor  as  well  as  the  favor  of  the  crown,  and  had 
everything  to  lose  by  making  themselves  unpop- 
ular with  the  home  government  ; but  they  de- 
clared in  their  resolutions  that  the  recent  adds, 
“ though  levelled  immediately  at  the  people  of 
Boston,  very  manifestly  and  glaringly  show,  if 
the  inhabitants  of  that  town  are  intimidated  into 
a mean  submission  to  said  afts,  that  the  like  are 
designed  for  all  the  colonies,  when  not  even  the 
shadow  of  liberty  to  his  person,  or  of  security 
to  his  property,  will  be  left  to  any  of  his  maj- 
esty’s subjefts  residing  on  the  American  conti- 
nent.” 

In  the  same  resolutions  they  appointed  Henry 
Middleton,  John  Rutledge,  Christopher  Gads- 
den, Thomas  Lynch,  and  Edward  Rutledge  to 
be  the  delegates  to  the  first  Continental  Congress 
to  resist  the  attacks  of  Parliament.  These  dele- 
gates were  an  able  and  useful  body  of  men.  In 
general  charafter  and  ability  they  were  equal  if 
325 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 


not  superior  to  Samuel  Adams,  John  Adams, 
Robert  Treat  Paine,  and  Thomas  Cushing,  who 
represented  Massachusetts,  and  they  were  nearly 
on  a par  with  the  Virginia  delegation  of  Wash- 
ington, Henry,  Randolph,  Harrison,  and  Pen- 
dleton. In  their  opinions  they  were  in  sympa- 
thy with  both  the  Virginia  and  Massachusetts 
delegates,  but  were  not  so  violent  and  not  so 
determined  to  force  the  issue  of  independence  as 
the  Massachusetts  men.  The  majority  of  the 
Congress  and  the  friends  of  liberty  in  Philadel- 
phia seem  to  have  always  placed  most  reliance 
on  the  representatives  of  South  Carolina  and 
of  Virginia,  whom  they  regarded  as  more  states- 
manlike and  judicious  than  the  Massachusetts 
delegates,  who  were  headstrong,  and  played  the 
part  of  agitators  rather  than  of  statesmen. 

When  the  delegates  returned  from  the  Con- 
gress, in  the  last  days  of  Oftober,  1774,  the 
Carolinians  immediately  set  to  work  to  create  a 
government  among  themselves  similar  to  the 
one  by  which  they  had  accomplished  their  own 
revolution  of  1719.  They  formed  a provincial 
congress  of  delegates  from  every  parish  and  dis- 
trict, which,  like  the  convention  of  1719,  was 
to  aft  independently  of  the  assembly  of  their 
royal  government,  see  that  the  non-importation 
resolutions  were  observed,  and  organize  the 
militia. 


326 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 


The  facility  with  which  the  Carolinians  could 
aft  together  was  strikingly  shown  in  the  Revolu- 
tion. The  non-importation  agreements  were  so 
striftly  enforced  that  not  a single  article  of  im- 
ported merchandise  could  be  landed.  Every 
man  turned  himself  into  a soldier ; even  the 
children  were  seen  drilling  with  sticks  in  the 
streets  ; and  the  few  who  seemed  out  of  sym- 
pathy with  the  general  will  were  often  roughly 
handled  by  the  imperious  majority. 

They  had  no  expeftation,  however,  that  there 
would  be  war.  They  confidently  believed  that 
their  aftion  and  preparations  would  bring  Great 
Britain  to  terms;  and  until  they  received  certain 
information  from  England,  they  had  no  thoughts 
of  aftual  bloodshed.  The  way  in  which  they 
obtained  this  information  was  characteristic,  and 
shows  that  high-handed  alertness  which  all  the 
conditions  of  their  life  had  made  habitual  with 
them. 

A packet  from  London,  carrying  the  mail  for 
the  Southern  colonies,  arrived  in  Charleston  on 
April  19,  1775.  A secret  committee  had  been 
appointed  to  watch  for  this  vessel,  and  when 
she  arrived,  William  Henry  Drayton,  John 
Newfville,  and  Thomas  Corbitt  demanded  all 
the  letters  she  carried.  The  postmaster  refused; 
but  the  letters  were  taken  from  him,  the  private 
ones  returned,  and  all  despatches  from  the 

327 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

British  government  opened  and  examined. 
There  were  letters  to  the  governors  of  Vir- 
ginia, the  Carolinas,  Georgia,  and  East  Florida, 
showing  conclusively  that  troops  were  to  be 
sent  to  coerce  all  the  colonies.  At  the  same 
time  a letter  was  found  from  the  governor  of 
Georgia  to  General  Gage,  the  British  com- 
mander at  Boston,  asking  him  to  send  troops  to 
control  the  Georgia  people.  This  letter  was 
retained  and  another  written  to  take  its  place, 
with  an  imitation  of  the  governor’s  signature, 
telling  Gage  that  there  was  no  occasion  for 
sending  troops,  as  the  Georgians  were  con- 
vinced of  their  errors  and  had  come  to  terms. 
In  the  agitations  which  preceded  the  civil  war 
of  1 86 1 it  will  be  remembered  that  the  Caro- 
linians took  from  the  United  States  mails  the 
pamphlets  which  had  been  sent  by  the  abolition 
societies  of  New  England  for  distribution  in 
the  South. 

News  of  the  battle  of  Lexington  was  received 
a few  days  afterwards,  settling  the  question  of 
war  beyond  a doubt,  and  a new  incentive  was 
now  added  in  the  fear  of  their  slaves.  They 
dreaded  a great  slave  uprising,  either  instigated 
by  the  British  government  or  tories,  or  of  the 
slaves’  own  motion.  Several  of  their  public 
documents  openly  speak  of  this  danger,  and  all 
their  exertions  were  redoubled. 

328 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

Twelve  hundred  stand  of  muskets,  which 
were  in  the  royal  magazine,  were  instantly 
seized  by  a party  of  Charleston  gentlemen  and 
distributed  among  the  militia.  Soon  after 
twelve  others  set  out  to  take  by  surprise  an 
English  powder  vessel  which  was  lying  near  St. 
Augustine,  and  after  overpowering  the  grena- 
diers on  board  and  spiking  the  guns,  they  suc- 
ceeded in  removing  from  her  fifteen  thousand 
pounds  of  powder.  They  returned  by  the  in- 
land passage  through  the  sounds,  and  delivered 
the  powder  in  safety,  while  their  pursuers  were 
looking  for  them  off  the  Charleston  bar.  A 
large  part  of  this  powder  was  sent  to  Massa- 
chusetts. 

An  association  paper  was  prepared,  describing 
the  condition  of  the  country,  the  danger  of  ser- 
vile insurrection,  and  binding  its  subscribers  to 
defend  both  the  continent  and  the  province.  This 
paper  was  carried  about  to  be  signed  by  all  the 
people  of  the  province.  Those  who  refused  to 
sign  were  proclaimed  as  enemies,  closely  ques- 
tioned as  to  their  reasons,  and  forbidden  to  have 
intercourse  with  the  associators.  They  were 
then  required  to  take  an  oath  of  neutrality,  and  if 
they  refused,  were  disarmed  and  some  of  them 
confined  to  their  houses  and  plantations. 

Such  thoroughness  was  not  to  be  found  at 
that  time  even  in  Massachusetts.  Only  about 
329 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

forty  persons  in  Charleston  refused  to  sign  the 
association  paper,  and  they  were  for  the  most 
part  officials  or  connefted  in  some  way  with 
the  royal  government.  In  the  interior  of  the 
country,  where  the  people  were  less  easily  con- 
trolled, tories  were  more  numerous,  especially  in 
the  district  between  the  Broad  and  Saluda  Rivers. 
As  they  showed  a decided  disposition  to  enforce 
their  opinions,  the  patriots  promptly  suppressed 
them  by  force  of  arms. 

A British  fleet  of  over  forty  vessels,  which 
attacked  Fort  Moultrie  and  attempted  to  take 
Charleston,  was  driven  off  by  the  defences  which 
the  people  had  been  so  diligent  to  prepare,  and 
soon  after  the  Cherokee  Indians,  who  had  been 
roused  to  hostility  by  British  emissaries,  were 
subdued.  If  the  Cherokees  and  tories  had  at- 
tacked on  the  west  at  the  same  time  that  the  fleet 
was  besieging  Charleston,  the  province  would 
have  been  taken.  But  the  Carolinians  were  for- 
tunate in  being  able  to  deal  with  each  of  these 
enemies  separately,  and  conquer  them  both. 

During  the  years  1 777  and  1778,  while  the 
war  was  raging  in  the  Northern  colonies.  South 
Carolina  not  only  enjoyed  complete  immunity 
from  invasion,  but  made  money  in  commerce, 
and  drove  a thriving  trade  in  supplying  goods  by 
wagons  to  North  Carolina,  Virginia,  and  Mary- 
land. In  1779,  however,  her  troubles  began 
330 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 


when  the  British  invaded  Georgia  ; and  although 
the  enemy  was  kept  off  during  that  year. 
Charleston  was  taken  in  1780,  and  the  British 
overran  the  whole  State,  dragooning  the  people 
into  submission  and  creating  tories  by  the  same 
means  that  the  Carolinians  had  used  a few  years 
before  to  create  patriots. 

An  association  paper  of  submission  to  the 
crown  was  passed  about,  and  in  Charleston  alone 
more  than  two  hundred  people  who  had  just 
before  been  in  arms  against  the  British  signed  it. 
Those  who  would  not  sign  were  treated  as 
prisoners  of  war  ; some  were  crowded  in  loath- 
some prison  ships  and  others  confined  to  narrow 
limits  on  land.  Severity  after  severity  was  en- 
forced against  them  until  hundreds  submitted  to 
escape  starvation.  Many  of  the  people  finally 
began  to  believe  that  they  had  been  abandoned  by 
the  Northern  colonies,  and  that  South  Carolina 
would  in  any  event  remain  a royal  province. 
Their  pride  was  broken,  and  the  pacification  of 
at  least  one  rebel  province  seemed  complete. 

The  officers  of  the  conquering  army  grew 
rich  on  the  plunder  of  plantations  and  ware- 
houses, and  cargoes  of  indigo  and  negroes  went 
out  of  the  harbor  for  their  advantage.  About 
twenty-five  thousand  slaves  are  said  to  have  been 
sold  in  the  West  Indies  by  the  officers,  and  one 
of  them.  Colonel  Moncrieff,  sold  eight  hundred 
33i 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 


as  his  share  of  the  spoils.  They  took  what 
they  pleased,  helping  themselves  to  the  silver 
and  plated  ware  with  which  the  houses  of  the 
rich  planters  were  furnished,  and  wantonly  de- 
stroyed the  beautiful  gardens  around  Charleston. 
They  enjoyed  themselves  with  the  concerts, 
assemblies,  and  amusements  which  the  Caro- 
linians had  been  so  fond  of,  and  brought  to  their 
entertainments  the  American  officers  who  were 
their  prisoners. 

Many  of  the  prominent  people  who  had  been 
released  on  parole  were  afterwards  seized  and 
imprisoned  for  nearly  a year  in  St.  Augustine. 
Henry  Laurens,  who  had  been  appointed  minis- 
ter to  Holland,  was  captured  on  his  way  to  that 
country  and  imprisoned  in  the  Tower  of  London 
for  over  a year  ; and,  indeed,  there  were  few 
eminent  South  Carolinians  of  that  time  whose 
histories  do  not  contain  an  account  of  a long 
imprisonment. 

The  wealthy  planters  were  in  a deplorable 
state  : their  houses  robbed,  gardens  and  planta- 
tions devastated,  buildings  burned,  and  the  ne- 
groes, without  whom  they  were  helpless,  car- 
ried off.  Many  abandoned  all  their  property 
and  left  the  province,  but  others  agreed  to  a sub- 
mission which  they  intended  to  break  at  the  first 
opportunity.  The  women,  in  many  instances, 
showed  greater  resolution  than  the  men,  refused 
332 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

to  attend  the  entertainments  of  the  British  offi- 
cers, encouraged  their  husbands  and  fathers  not 
to  yield  to  save  their  property,  and  cheerfully 
followed  them  to  the  prison  ships  or  into  banish- 
ment, where  they  were  usually  dependent  on 
charity  for  their  support. 

Among  those  who  had  fled  to  North  Carolina 
was  Colonel  Sumter,  and  the  exiles  gradually 
gathered  around  him  as  their  leader  until  he  was 
able  to  carry  on  a sort  of  guerilla  warfare  against 
the  British.  Other  similar  bands  were  formed  ; 
and  in  the  summer,  when  General  Gates  arrived 
from  the  North,  he  found  himself  with  about 
three  thousand  men  ; but  he  was  defeated  at 
Camden,  and  Sumter,  who  was  now  assisted  by 
the  famous  Marion,  was  left  to  continue  the 
contest  as  best  he  could  until  the  arrival  of 
General  Greene,  who  finally  drove  the  British 
from  the  South. 

But  it  was  ten  years  and  more  before  South 
Carolina  recovered  from  that  one  year  of  ravage 
after  Charleston  was  captured.  The  unity  of 
feeling  among  her  people  had  been  broken. 
Impoverished  debtors  and  angry  creditors  — 
those  who  had  lost  all  by  patriotism  and  those 
who  had  saved  their  property  by  temporizing 
— struggled  and  quarrelled  together,  filling  the 
State  with  discord  and  confusion.  But  before 
the  year  1 800  they  had  settled  down  on  the  old 
333 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 


lines.  New  negroes  were  purchased,  houses 
rebuilt,  and  the  second  period  of  prosperity 
began,  which  was  greatly  accelerated  by  the 
introduction  of  cotton-planting  and  several  im- 
provements in  the  cultivation  of  rice. 

In  the  year  1783  Gideon  Dupont,  a descend- 
ant of  one  of  the  Huguenot  families,  introduced 
the  system  of  overflowing  the  rice-fields  with 
water  at  certain  seasons,  which  not  only  stimu- 
lated the  growth  of  the  plants  but  killed  the 
weeds  and  saved  all  the  labor  of  destroying  them 
with  hoes.  Soon  after  this,  machinery  worked 
by  the  tides  was  invented  for  separating  the  grain 
from  the  husk,  which  had  formerly  been  done 
by  hand  with  most  exhausting  labor  that  broke 
down  the  strength  of  the  negro  men  and  often 
destroyed  the  fertility  of  the  women.  Other 
improvements  followed  which  greatly  lessened 
the  cost  of  producing  a crop  and  brought  rice 
culture  to  a high  state  of  efficiency. 

Cotton-raising  took  the  place  of  the  culture 
of  indigo,  which  soon  after  the  Revolution  was 
produced  so  cheaply  in  the  East  Indies  that  it 
was  no  longer  profitable  in  Carolina.  When 
the  cotton-gin  was  invented  by  Miller  and 
Whitney,  of  Connecticut,  in  1793,  an  enor- 
mous impetus  was  given  to  cultivation.  Cotton 
lands  in  South  Carolina  doubled  in  value,  and 
the  legislature,  for  fifty  thousand  dollars,  bought 
334 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 


from  Whitney  and  Miller  their  patent  and  made 
it  free  to  the  Carolinians. 

The  cultivation  of  wheat  and  other  produCts, 
which  in  her  first  period  of  prosperity  had 
given  variety  to  the  industries  of  the  province, 
was  abandoned,  and  South  Carolina  became  a 
State  of  two  produCts,  rice  and  cotton,  depen- 
dent for  their  large  profits  on  negro  slavery. 
After  the  Revolution  her  people  had  the  right 
to  trade  with  all  the  world  ; but  they  soon  re- 
turned to  their  old  lines  of  trade  almost  exclu- 
sively with  Great  Britain,  and  the  close  relation- 
ship with  what  had  been  the  mother  country  was 
renewed  with  the  same  characteristics  of  long 
credit  which  had  prevailed  in  colonial  days. 
This  second  period  of  prosperity  was  more  vig- 
orous than  the  first,  and  the  English  merchants 
reaped  a richer  harvest  from  South  Carolina  as 
a State  than  they  had  ever  received  from  her  as 
a colony. 

In  this  second  period  of  prosperity  better 
houses  were  built  in  Charleston,  the  handsome 
gardens  round  the  town  and  on  some  of  the 
plantations  were  restored  and  enlarged,  and  the 
cultivation  of  flowers  greatly  increased.  The 
imperiousness,  generosity,  and  high  spirit  which 
had  been  the  characteristics  of  the  people  in 
colonial  times  were  intensified  and  carried  to 
extremes.  The  hospitality  of  the  planters  was 
335 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

greater  than  ever,  and  very  large  sums  seem  to 
have  been  spent  in  charity  in  the  town.  Enter- 
tainments were  numerous,  long  sittings  at  meals 
became  common,  there  was  not  a little  of  fairly 
good  education  and  general  information,  and 
much  discussion  of  political  questions  and  points 
of  honor. 

A novelist  was  produced  in  this  period, — 
William  Gilmore  Simms, — born  in  1806,  who, 
though  by  no  means  great,  won  for  himself  a 
respeftable  position  in  American  literature. 
Edgar  Allan  Poe  considered  him  the  best  after 
Cooper,  and  he  wrote  somewhat  in  Cooper’s 
vein.  He  had  a most  fertile  brain,  and  his 
volumes  are  very  numerous.  His  imagination 
was  vivid,  and  he  handled  some  of  his  most 
unpromising  topics  with  a great  deal  of  skill. 
But  his  most  important  merit  is  that  he  was  a 
thorough  son  of  the  soil,  describing  conditions 
which  he  thoroughly  understood  and  in  which 
he  believed,  and  this  characteristic  of  his  books 
is  now  all  that  preserves  them  from  oblivion. 
In  his  later  years  he  lived  the  life  of  a true  Caro- 
linian, in  a good  country  house,  in  which  he 
dispensed  liberal  hospitality. 

This  second  period  of  Carolina’s  prosperity 
was  remarkable  for  a great  increase  of  duelling. 
Before  the  Revolution  there  had  been  a few 
duels  fought  with  swords,  notably  one  between 
336 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

Thomas  Middleton  and  Colonel  Grant,  of  the 
British  regular  army,  about  a question  of  rank 
at  the  time  of  the  Cherokee  war.  After  the 
Revolution  pistols  were  invariably  used,  and  the 
number  of  duels  increased  until,  soon  after  1800, 
there  were  four  or  five  a year,  and  afterwards 
they  became  more  numerous.  Even  boys  some- 
times fought,  observing  all  the  requirements 
of  the  code.  At  first  the  survivor  was  usually 
found  guilty  of  manslaughter ; but  the  punish- 
ment, burning  in  the  hand,  was  always  remitted. 
In  later  times  the  trial  was  merely  an  investi- 
gation into  the  manner  in  which  the  duel  had 
been  condufted,  and  if  the  procedure  had  been 
fair,  the  survivor  was  acquitted  as  a matter  of 
course. 

The  rules  and  principles  of  the  code  were 
developed  to  excessive  complexity  and  refine- 
ment. Men  who  had  mastered  all  the  intrica- 
cies and  acquired  that  “ exquisite  sensibility,” 
as  it  was  called,  in  affairs  of  honor,  were  looked 
up  to  with  great  respeft.  Charles  Cotesworth 
Pinckney  was  one  of  the  most  eminent  in  these 
matters,  and  Edward  Rutledge  also  had  a great 
reputation. 

But  all  efforts  by  grand  juries,  petitions  signed 
by  thousands  of  respeftable  people,  and  the 
preaching  of  the  clergy  were  unavailing  to 
check  the  spread  of  the  fashion,  and  an  attempt 
Vol.  II.— 22  3 3 7 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

was  made  to  regulate  it  by  law.  A bill  was 
draughted  providing  a legal  tribunal  to  decide 
points  of  honor  and  to  impose  penalties  affedting 
the  charadler  and  civil  privileges  of  the  duellists, 
their  seconds  and  abettors.  The  survivor  was 
not  to  be  punished  by  death,  but  was  to  be  com- 
pelled to  support  the  family  of  his  antagonist, 
and  this  last  provision  probably  prevented  the 
bill  becoming  a law.  Duelling  continued  until, 
when  the  men  of  high  charadler  who  had  en- 
forced the  fairness  of  the  code  were  driven  from 
influence  and  control  after  the  civil  war,  it  de- 
generated into  the  assassination  and  shooting  at 
sight  which  we  have  known  in  the  South  in  our 
own  times,  and  which  is  now  said  to  be  slowly 
disappearing. 

Among  these  high-strung  but  very  charming 
and  agreeable  people,  the  planters  were  the 
aristocrats,  and  are  said  to  have  ignored  and 
slighted  the  merchant  class.  But  from  other 
sources  we  hear  of  merchants  attaining  to  posi- 
tions of  much  eminence  and  importance,  and 
becoming  equal  in  every  respedt  to  the  plant- 
ers ; and  as  many  of  them  acquired  considerable 
wealth,  this  was  naturally  to  be  expedted.  Henry 
Laurens,  one  of  the  most  distinguished  of  the  Rev- 
olutionary charadters,  was  a merchant,  Christo- 
pher Gadsden  also,  and  Gabriel  Manigault  was 
both  merchant  and  planter. 

338 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

The  general  tone  was,  however,  set  by  the 
planters,  and  was  not  very  consistent  with  mer- 
cantile pursuits.  The  sons  of  planters,  unac- 
customed to  stri6h  discipline,  hot-headed,  and  full 
of  what  they  had  heard  of  honor,  became  ex- 
traordinary characters  as  clerks  in  a counting- 
house  when  they  began  to  maintain  what  they 
considered  their  rights.  Rather  than  break  in 
such  wild  colts  the  merchants  imported  clerks 
from  Europe,  and  the  planter  class  was  left  to 
continue  in  those  loose  and  desultory  habits  of 
business  which  ruined  so  many. 

In  fad,  everything  in  South  Carolina — the 
long  credits  which  had  always  been  allowed  by 
the  merchants,  the  assistance  the  province  had 
received  from  England,  and  its  good  luck  in  so 
many  ventures — encouraged  debt  contracting, 
and  before  the  adoption  of  the  National  Consti- 
tution we  find  stay-laws  and  various  contrivances 
for  preventing  the  collection  of  debts. 

The  cultivation  of  rice  and  cotton  was  largely 
speculative,  some  years  bringing  large  returns 
and  others  little  or  nothing.  Prices  were  vari- 
able, and  floods,  frosts,  hurricanes,  and  fires  lent 
their  assistance  to  make  Carolina  values  very 
unstable.  The  people  grew  accustomed  to  sud- 
den transitions  from  poverty  to  riches  or  from 
riches  to  poverty,  and  were  extremely  reckless. 
Sometimes  the  crash  came  in  a man’s  lifetime ; 

339 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 


but  often,  by  the  use  of  credits  and  other  de- 
vices, he  could  keep  up  appearances  throughout 
a long  life.  Men  who  for  years  had  been  sup- 
posed to  be  in  the  most  prosperous  circum- 
stances were  on  their  death  often  found  to  be 
totally  insolvent  and  their  large  families  left 
without  a penny.  In  these  circumstances  the 
women  rose  superior  to  the  situation,  gath- 
ered together  the  remains  of  the  estate,  opened 
schools  or  lodging-houses,  gave  their  children 
stricter  training  than  they  would  have  had  under 
their  father,  and  in  the  end  restored  the  family 
to  something  like  prosperity. 

But  nothing  could  shake  the  faith  of  the  Car- 
olinians in  their  methods.  They  believed  most 
thoroughly  in  their  system  of  speculative  agri- 
culture without  manufactures.  It  was  the  only 
life  worth  living,  and  they  had  a supreme  con- 
tempt for  people  who  followed  any  other  form 
of  existence.  That  men  who  loved  their  coun- 
try or  respefted  themselves  should  want  to 
build  up  manufacturing  industries,  which  neces- 
sarily degraded  the  white  man  to  the  level  of 
the  slave,  was  to  them  inconceivable.  Their 
furious  resentment  against  the  national  protec- 
tive tariff  brought  them  to  the  verge  of  rebellion 
thirty  years  before  the  civil  war,  when  with 
characteristic  impetuousness  they  announced  the 
doCtrine  that  they  had  the  right  to  nullify  aCts 
340 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

of  Congress  which  were  inconsistent  with  the 
system  of  civilization  in  their  own  State ; and 
their  hatred  of  the  tariff  was  in  the  civil  war 
almost  as  strong  an  incentive  as  their  interest  in 
slavery. 

There  seems  never  to  have  been  an  hour  when 
they  did  not  feel  entirely  competent  to  stand  alone 
before  the  whole  world,  and  their  history  seemed 
to  justify  them  ; for  had  they  not  maintained 
themselves  unaided  against  the  Indians,  the  pro- 
prietors, the  Spaniards,  the  pirates,  and  their 
own  slaves,  who  outnumbered  them  three  to  one  ? 
They  saw  their  own  interest  and  life  with  a sub- 
lime and  ingenuous  clearness  which  ignored  every 
obstacle.  They  overthrew  the  proprietary  sys- 
tem with  unanimous  and  fearless  self-confidence, 
and  with  cool  courtesy  invited  the  governor 
who  was  maintaining  it  to  join  them.  For  his 
manliness  in  refusing  they  respefted  him,  and 
afterwards  took  pleasure  in  having  as  their  royal 
governor  the  man  who  had  resisted  them  coura- 
geously ; for  they  were  so  overwhelmingly  suc- 
cessful that  they  could  afford  to  love  their 
enemies. 

In  a similar  spirit  they  undertook  to  nullify 
the  afts  of  Congress,  and  graciously  abandoned 
the  attempt  more  from  a conviftion  that  the 
game  at  that  time  was  not  worth  the  candle  than 
from  any  fear  of  consequences.  But  thirty 
34i 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 


years  afterwards,  when  slavery  was  attacked  and 
they  believed  their  all  was  at  stake,  they  moved 
with  a unanimous  promptness  and  high-spirited 
confidence,  as  though  they  intended  to  sweep  the 
continent  in  one  day,  and,  to  use  their  own 
language,  make  slavery  national  and  freedom 
seftional.  Their  State  was  the  first  to  secede, 
and  they  fired  the  first  shot  of  the  rebellion. 
But  they  had  reached  their  limitation  at  last,  and 
their  pride,  their  power,  their  wealth,  and,  un- 
fortunately, also  many  of  their  highest  and  best 
qualities,  were  overwhelmed. 

It  was  a pathetic  fall  and  a serious  loss;  for 
whatever  may  be  our  opinion  of  the  crime  of 
slavery,  the  civilization  which  South  Carolina 
built  upon  it  had  many  merits,  and  her  public 
men  were  not  without  important  influence  in 
the  Revolution  and  in  the  Constitution.  She  had 
her  day,  and  it  was  a pleasant  one,  and,  as  she 
will  always  believe,  great.  But  in  many  respefts 
it  was  the  day  of  the  successful  spoilt  child. 
Everything  had  been  in  her  favor.  When  the 
proprietors  could  no  longer  afford  to  spend 
money  in  her  aid,  the  crown  and  the  English 
merchants  began  their  system  of  coddling,  and 
she  was  given  a whole  division  of  the  human 
race  to  keep  the  mud  from  her  hands  and  the 
sun  from  her  head. 

Robert  Young  Hayne  was  one  of  the  promi- 
342 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 


nent  men  produced  in  the  nullification  period 
of  South  Carolina’s  history.  A typical  Caro- 
linian in  thought  and  conduit,  and  of  unusual 
eloquence,  he  was  not  in  other  respefts  of  very 
marked  ability ; he  is  remembered  principally 
for  his  speech  in  the  Senate  on  nullification,  to 
which  Daniel  Webster  made  his  famous  reply. 

Calhoun,  however,  who  belonged  to  the  same 
period,  was  a most  remarkable  man,  and  un- 
doubtedly the  strongest  intelleft  that  was  ever 
produced  in  South  Carolina.  He  was  somewhat 
unlike  the  others  both  in  appearance  and  char- 
after,  and  impresses  one  as  a variation  of  the 
type.  He  came  from  the  frontier  Scotch-Irish, 
and  was  not  of  the  usual  planter  or  merchant 
class.  His  deeply  marked,  rugged  features,  with 
heavy,  prominent  bones  and  cavernous  eyes,  are 
totally  unlike  any  of  the  other  faces  that  have 
come  down  to  us  in  South  Carolina  portraits. 

H is  father  was  a man  of  education,  and  Cal- 
houn was  trained  in  that  Calvinistic  mental 
discipline  which  has  so  often  in  this  country 
given  such  good  results.  He  is  known  now  by 
the  ordinary  reader  of  American  history  only 
as  the  desperate  champion  of  the  lost  cause 
of  nullification ; but  we  should  remember  that 
before  he  took  up  that  cause  he  had  a most 
useful  career  in  national  politics.  He  had  been 
an  enthusiastic  supporter  of  the  war  of  1812, 
343 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

and  had  advocated  internal  improvements  in 
roads  and  canals,  the  bank  bill,  and  the  protec- 
tive tariff  of  1816.  As  Secretary  of  War  he 
organized  and  gave  new  life  to  that  department, 
very  much  as  Hamilton,  years  before,  had  or- 
ganized the  Treasury ; and  the  War  Depart- 
ment has  existed  on  his  system  down  almost  to 
the  present  time. 

Whether  we  agree  with  his  opinions  or  not, 
it  is  impossible  to  deny  the  wonderful  subtilty 
and  analytical  power  of  his  arguments,  and  at 
times  there  is  a touch  of  genius  and  charm  in 
his  language.  Edward  Everett  said  of  him  that 
as  Clay  was  the  great  leader  and  Webster  the 
great  orator  of  that  time,  Calhoun  was  the  great 
thinker.  Clay  and  Webster  also  bore  strong 
testimony  to  his  mental  power  as  well  as  to  his 
incorruptible  integrity,  and  John  Stuart  Mill 
thought  he  was  the  ablest  of  the  American 
political  philosophers. 

The  best  service  of  South  Carolina  to  the 
Union  was  her  influence  in  forming  the  National 
Constitution  which  she  afterwards  tried  so  hard 
to  destroy.  When,  in  1778,  Congress  sent  out 
the  Articles  of  Confederation  for  approval.  South 
Carolina  gave  them  more  earnest  and  careful 
study  than  any  other  State.  William  Henry 
Drayton,  the  chief-justice,  prepared  a redraught 
of  the  articles,  with  suggestions  which  were 
344 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 

afterwards  embodied  in  the  Constitution,  and 
contributed  materially  to  the  formation  of  that 
document. 

As  a Carolinian  and  States’  rights  man,  he,  of 
course,  was  anxious  to  secure  proteftion  for 
States’  rights,  and  especially  the  Southern  in- 
terest ; and  he  even  provided  that  each  State 
should  keep  up  such  military  establishment  as  it 
pleased  and  have  a naval  seminary,  all  of  which 
was,  of  course,  very  characteristic  of  the  feelings 
of  his  people.  But  he  also  enlarged  the  federal 
power  beyond  anything  contained  in  the  articles 
prepared  by  the  Continental  Congress,  and  he 
strongly  urged  the  necessity  of  it,  suggesting 
that  Congress  should  have  power  to  define  and 
punish  treason  and  levy  taxes  independently  of 
the  States.  These  powers  were  not  contained 
in  the  original  articles,  and  they  were  after 
wards  found  absolutely  essentia]  to  any  com- 
petent federal  government.  He  also  suggested 
regular  executive  departments  of  war,  navy,  and 
treasury. 

He  was  a student  of  political  theories  and 
forms  of  government,  a subjeft  which  was  al- 
ways popular  among  the  Carolinians.  Charles 
Pinckney,  who  in  after-years  was  governor  of 
South  Carolina,  a member  of  the  United  States 
Senate,  and  minister  to  Spain,  had  similar  tastes, 
and  when  the  Revolution  was  over  he  appears  to 
345 


Landgraves,  Pirates,  and  Caziques 


have  devoted  considerable  time  to  evolving  a 
more  suitable  form  of  government  for  the  Union, 
which  resulted  in  the  very  advanced  and  sug- 
gestive plan  which  he  laid  before  the  Consti- 
tutional Convention  at  Philadelphia  in  1787. 


Dray  all  ■ XsK1«y  R.iver~  $•  C 


BANKRUPTS,  SPANIARDS,  AND  MULBERRY-TREES 

y^FTER  the  proprietors  of  Carolina  had  sur- 
rendered all  their  rights  in  their  province 
at  the  close  of  the  revolution  of  1719,  the  crown 
recognized  North  and  South  Carolina  as  two  dis- 
tinct commonwealths,  and  secured  them  in  their 
territory;  but  the  land  now  within  the  State 
of  Georgia  which  lay  between  South  Carolina 
and  the  Spanish  possessions  in  Florida  was  taken 
by  the  crown,  to  be  disposed  of  in  future  grants. 

In  1717,  however,  two  years  before  the 
revolution  in  South  Carolina  and  the  final  sur- 
render of  the  proprietors.  Sir  Robert  Mont- 
gomery was  seized  with  a desire  to  possess  the 
territory  which  afterwards  became  Georgia,  and 
plant  a colony  there.  Like  the  other  distin- 
347 


Bankrupts,  Spaniards,  Mulberry-Trees 

guished  men  who  had  taken  a fancy  to  the  South, 
he  was  carried  away  by  enthusiasm,  and  in  his 
prospe&us  advertising  for  settlers  he  described 
Georgia  as  the  most  delightful  country  in  the 
universe.  “ Nature,”  he  said,  “ has  not  blessed 
the  world  with  any  traft  which  can  be  prefer- 
able to  it.  Paradise  with  all  her  virgin  beauties 
may  be  modestly  supposed,  at  most,  but  equal 
to  its  native  excellencies.”  The  name  he  gave 
his  province  was  the  Margravate  of  Axilia,  and 
he  divided  it  into  a complicated  system  of  coun- 
ties and  districts,  very  much  as  Locke  had  done 
in  his  constitution  for  Carolina,  but  with  more 
of  a military  intent,  for  these  divisions  were 
arranged  so  as  to  be  a sort  of  self-afting  defence 
against  the  Spaniards. 

But  the  three  years  which  the  proprietors 
gave  him  to  make  the  settlement  or  forfeit  the 
land  expired  without  his  accomplishing  any- 
thing, and  nothing  was  attempted  in  Georgia 
until  1729,  when  it  was  brought  to  the  attention 
of  Oglethorpe,  who  was  interested  in  the  con- 
dition of  the  debtor  prisons  of  England. 

Oglethorpe  had  entered  the  army  when  very 
young,  and  enjoyed  a most  interesting  experience 
of  military  life.  He  had  been  with  Marlbor- 
ough in  the  Low  Countries,  with  Peterborough 
in  Italy,  and  had  served  with  Prince  Eugene 
against  the  Turks.  Returning  home,  he  entered 
34§ 


Bankrupts,  Spaniards,  Mulberry-Trees 

Parliament,  and  at  the  time  he  became  interested 
in  Georgia  was  thirty-three  years  old,  and  had 
been  a member  of  Parliament  seven  years. 

One  of  his  friends,  named  Caslett,  who  was 
imprisoned  for  debt,  being  unable  to  pay  the 
customary  fees  to  the  warder,  was  forced  to  lodge 
in  a building  infe&ed  with  the  small-pox,  where 
he  died.  This  direfted  Oglethorpe’s  attention  to 
the  sufferings  and  horrors  of  these  debtor  prisons, 
and  he  had  a committee  of  Parliament  appointed 
to  investigate  them.  On  the  information  thus 
obtained,  and  in  company  with  Lord  Percival 
and  other  noblemen,  he  sent  a memorial  to  the 
Privy  Council  asking  for  a grant  of  the  land 
lying  south  of  the  Savannah  River,  where  he 
agreed  to  establish  a province  for  indigent  peo- 
ple who  had  become  a burden  to  the  public. 

In  1732  the  crown  gave  a charter  which  was 
totally  unlike  any  other  charter  of  a colony  in 
America.  It  did  not  create  the  usual  govern- 
ment of  governor,  council,  and  assembly  of  the 
people  ; nor  was  it  a proprietary  charter  giving 
the  province  to  one  or  more  persons  for  their 
own  profit ; but  it  created  what  would  now 
be  called  a charitable  trust  corporation,  making 
twenty-one  noblemen  and  others  “ Trustees  for 
establishing  the  colony  of  Georgia  in  Amer- 
ica.” These  trustees  were  to  govern  the  col- 
ony through  a common  council  of  fifteen  per- 
349 


Bankrupts,  Spaniards,  Mulberry-Trees 

sons,  and  make  laws  and  ordinances  to  regulate 
the  people  who  should  go  to  the  province. 
There  was  no  representative  assembly  of  the 
people,  as  in  the  other  colonies,  and  there  was 
no  governor.  The  unfortunate  and  destitute, 
for  whose  benefit  the  enterprise  was  intended, 
were  to  be  paternally  managed  by  the  trustees 
for  twenty-one  years,  and  at  the  end  of  that  time 
the  crown  would  establish  such  form  of  govern- 
ment as  should  seem  best. 

As  a compensation  for  giving  the  people  no 
political  rights,  the  charter  expressly  provided 
that  they  should  have  all  the  other  liberties 
of  free-born  British  subjefts.  The  controlling 
idea  evidently  was  that,  as  the  settlers  would  all 
be  people  who  had  failed  to  take  care  of  them- 
selves in  England,  they  were  to  be  treated  as 
minors  for  twenty-one  years,  and  after  that  given 
such  government  as  their  improvement  should 
warrant. 

The  colony  was  named  Georgia  in  honor  of 
George  II.,  who  had  granted  the  charter,  as 
Carolina  had  been  named  after  Charles  I.  Ogle- 
thorpe and  his  illustrious  friends  opened  an 
office  in  Old  Palace  Yard,  Westminster,  and 
received  many  private  subscriptions  in  addition 
to  a grant  of  ten  thousand  pounds  from  Parlia- 
ment. This  money  they  used  to  defray  the  ex- 
penses of  the  government  and  in  transporting 
350 


Bankrupts,  Spaniards,  Mulberry-Trees 

the  settlers  and  supplying  them  with  necessaries 
and  cattle  until  they  were  established  on  the 
land.  They  tried  to  get  only  the  most  worthy 
insolvents  and  unfortunates  ; but  they  also 
received  people  of  means  who  went  over  at 
their  own  expense,  giving  each  five  hundred 
acres  of  land  on  condition  that  they  carried  over 
one  servant  for  every  fifty  acres  and  did  military 
service  in  time  of  war.  The  population,  in 
consequence,  consisted  of  an  upper  class  of  large 
landholders,  a middle  class  of  debtors,  for  whom 
the  colony  was  founded,  and  a lower  class  of 
indentured  servants. 

Besides  the  philanthropic  design,  the  colony 
was  intended  as  a bulwark  to  protect  South- 
Carolina  against  the  Spaniards.  This  being  the 
purpose,  the  presence  of  a large  slave  population 
which  could  be  incited  to  insurreftion  by 
Spanish  emissaries  must  be  avoided,  and  accord- 
ingly we  find  negro  slavery  absolutely  prohibited. 

But  beneficence  and  military  protection  from 
the  Spaniards  were  not  the  only  objeCts  to  be 
accomplished.  The  wise  and  steady  Ogle- 
thorpe and  his  friends  were  as  much  excited 
by  the  glorious  prospefts  of  their  enterprise  as 
Montgomery  by  the  Margravate  of  Axilia.  It 
was  the  old  story  over  again.  Some  of  the 
best  and  most  illustrious  men  of  England,  who 
thought  everything  north  of  Virginia  a frozen 
35i 


Bankrupts,  Spaniards,  Mulberry-Trees 

desert,  had  been  exalted  into  wild  enthusiasm  by 
the  magic  touch  of  the  South.  Georgia  was  to 
be  devoted  to  raising  raw  silk,  wine,  oil,  dyes, 
drugs,  and  many  other  commodities  which  Eng- 
land was  obliged  to  purchase  at  high  prices  from 
foreign  countries.  She  was  to  be  the  ideal 
colony  ; have  no  manufactures,  but  furnish  enor- 
mous supplies  of  raw  material  to  the  manufac- 
turers of  the  mother  country. 

“ Why,  just  think,”  said  the  enthusiastic  trus- 
tees, “ of  the  single  item  of  raw  silk.  England 
now  spends  five  hundred  thousand  pounds  a 
year  for  manufactured  silk  from  Italy,  France, 
Holland,  India,  and  China.  But  when  Georgia 
supplies  the  raw  silk,  almost  the  whole  of  that 
five  hundred  thousand  pounds  will  go  to  English 
silk-weavers.  Twenty  thousand  poor  people 
will  be  employed  in  Georgia  raising  the  raw 
silk,  and  at  least  forty  thousand  more  in  England 
weaving  it.  Nay,  it  is  even  probable  that  the 
Georgians  will  furnish  the  raw  silk  so  cheaply 
that  the  silk-weavers  in  England  will  be  able 
to  undersell  all  the  rest  of  the  world,  in  which 
case  England  will  have  a monopoly  of  the  silk 
trade,  and  the  profits  will  be  almost  unlimited. 

“ Wine  also  can  be  raised  in  such  quantities 
that  we  need  no  longer  go  to  Madeira  for  it ; 
and  the  flax,  hemp,  and  potash  of  Georgia  will 
reduce  the  balance  of  trade  with  Russia  by 
352 


one 


Bankrupts,  Spaniards,  Mulberry-Trees 

hundred  and  thirty  thousand  pounds.  The  in- 
digo, cochineal,  olives,  and  dyeing  woods  will 
have  a similar  effeft  on  the  balance  of  trade  with 
the  countries  from  which  we  now  obtain  those 
products  ; and  this  grand  result  will  be  accom- 
plished simply  by  removing  from  England  a 
body  of  indigent  paupers  and  debtors  who  are 
now  a burden  to  society,  thus  relieving  the  poor- 
rates  and  parishes  and  emptying  the  prisons.” 
All  this  was  shown  most  clearly  in  that  way 
statistics  have  of  proving  everything  beyond  the 
possibility  of  a doubt.  It  was  to  be  the  greatest 
province  of  the  British  empire.  “ Such  an  air 
and  soil,”  says  Oglethorpe,  “ can  only  be  fitly 
described  by  a poetical  pen,  because  there  is 
but  little  danger  of  exceeding  the  truth.  Take, 
therefore,  part  of  Mr.  Waller’s  description  of  an 
island  in  the  neighborhood  of  Carolina,  to  give 
you  an  idea  of  this  happy  climate  : 

“ ‘ Ripe  fruits  and  blossoms  on  the  same  trees  live  ; 

At  once  they  promise  and  at  once  they  give ; 

So  sweet  the  air,  so  moderate  the  clime, 

None  sickly  lives  or  dies  before  his  time. 

Heaven  sure  has  kept  this  spot  of  earth  uncurst, 

To  show  how  all  things  were  created  first.’  ” 

The  soul  of  the  enterprise  was  Oglethorpe, 
who  in  the  benevolent  purposes  which  animated 
him  had  probably  been  influenced  by  George 
Berkeley,  afterwards  the  great  Bishop  Berke- 
Vol.  II.— 23  353 


Bankrupts,  Spaniards,  Mulberry-Trees 

ley,  whom  he  had  known  when  he  was  with 
Lord  Peterborough  on  his  diplomatic  embassy 
to  Italy.  Berkeley,  a few  years  before  Ogle- 
thorpe’s Georgia  enterprise,  had  planned  his 
college  for  America,  and  his  circular  or  pro- 
speftus  for  it  is  interesting  to  read,  because  it  is 
another  instance  showing  how  the  English  upper 
classes  were  relying  on  the  Southern  colonies  for 
the  fulfilment  of  all  their  ideals. 

After  the  most  careful  inquiry  and  considera- 
tion, Berkeley  had  decided  to  establish  his  col- 
lege in  the  Bermudas,  which  he  explains  at 
length  were  at  that  time  the  centre  of  the  British 
empire  in  that  part  of  the  world.  They  were 
in  the  track  of  all  vessels  to  America,  and  they 
alone  had  a trade  with  all  the  other  colonies. 
Their  people  were  the  most  simple  and  moral 
and  their  climate  the  most  genial  in  the  world. 
That  genial  climate,  which  others  believed 
would  stimulate  trade  and  commerce  to  un- 
heard-of proportions,  Berkeley  relied  upon  to 
develop  literature  and  the  arts,  and  from  his 
college  were  to  go  forth  every  year  a highly 
trained  clergy,  who  would  convert  the  negro 
slaves  and  Indians  to  Christianity  and  forestall 
the  efforts  of  the  French  and  Spanish  to  establish 
the  Roman  Catholic  religion  in  America. 

Europe  was  worn  out  and  decayed,  but  in  the 
virgin  air  and  soil  of  the  New  World  life  and 
354 


Bankrupts,  Spaniards,  Mulberry-Trees 

beauty  would  spring  forth  anew,  and  on  this 
prospeft  he  wrote  those  verses  which  are  as  im- 
mortal as  his  discoveries  in  metaphysics : 

“ There  shall  be  sung  another  golden  age, 

The  rise  of  empire  and  of  arts  ; 

The  good  and  great  inspiring  epic  rage, 

The  wisest  heads  and  noblest  hearts. 

“ Not  such  as  Europe  breeds  in  her  decay; 

Such  as  she  bred  when  fresh  and  young, 

When  heavenly  flame  did  animate  her  clay, 

By  future  poets  shall  be  sung. 

“ Westward  the  course  of  empire  takes  its  way, 

The  four  first  adds  already  past, 

A fifth  shall  close  the  drama  with  the  day  : 

Time’s  noblest  offspring  is  the  last.” 

General  Codrington  had  attempted  a similar 
college  in  the  Barbadoes.  Berkeley  was  more 
nearly  successful,  and  raised  five  thousand  pounds ; 
but  the  grant  from  Parliament  of  twenty  thousand 
pounds,  on  which  he  relied,  was  never  made,  and 
the  money  he  had  collefted  was  turned  over  to 
Oglethorpe  for  Georgia. 

In  1732,  soon  after  obtaining  the  charter, 
Oglethorpe  sailed  for  the  province,  carrying 
with  him  thirty-five  families,  who  had  been 
selected  with  the  greatest  care  as  the  most 
worthy  of  the  throng  that  applied.  At  the  last 
moment  the  trustees  examined  each  family  sep- 
arately in  the  cabin,  to  make  sure  that  they 
355 


Bankrupts,  Spaniards,  Mulberry-Trees 

were  entirely  willing  to  go,  and  only  one  man 
declined.  The  Duke  of  Newcastle  sent  letters 
to  the  governors  of  all  the  colonies,  urging  them 
to  give  every  assistance  in  their  power  to  the 
new  enterprise,  and  the  naval  commanders  on 
the  coast  had  similar  instructions.  Encourage- 
ment and  favor  came  from  all  sides, — a strange 
contrast  to  the  conditions  under  which  some  of 
the  Northern  colonies  were  founded. 

Noblemen,  eminent  people  of  all  sorts,  and 
the  fashionable  society  of  London  were  lost  in 
admiration  of  Oglethorpe.  Young,  distin- 
guished, cultivated,  the  delight  of  every  draw- 
ing-room and  literary  gathering  in  the  metropo- 
lis, already  distinguished  as  a soldier,  and  with 
a great  parliamentary  career  before  him,  he  was 
going  without  reward,  in  a crowded  emigrant 
ship,  to  conduft  thirty-five  families  of  broken 
debtors  to  the  American  wilderness. 

In  January,  1733,  Oglethorpe  and  his  com- 
pany reached  Charleston,  where  they  were  re- 
ceived with  the  greatest  consideration  and  quar- 
tered at  Beaufort,  while  Colonel  William  Bull 
went  with  Oglethorpe  to  seleCt  a site  for  their 
settlement  in  Georgia.  In  their  sailing  canoe 
they  threaded  the  sounds  and  bays  until  they 
came  to  a low  bluff  covered  with  pines,  where 
Savannah  now  stands.  This  spot  was  at  once 
selected,  a treaty  made  with  the  Indians  who 
356 


Bankrupts,  Spaniards,  Mulberry-Trees 

occupied  it,  and  the  emigrants  brought  down 
from  Beaufort,  supplied  with  cattle,  rice,  and 
everything  they  needed  by  the  Carolinians,  who 
were  delighted  with  the  prospeft  of  this  defence 
between  their  slaves  and  the  Spaniards. 

House-building  began,  and  Oglethorpe  worked 
with  his  own  hands  and  took  his  turn  standing 
guard  at  night.  Assistance  poured  in  from  South 
Carolina.  Prominent  men  came  down,  spend- 
ing weeks  at  a time,  to  give  advice,  and  bringing 
with  them  their  slaves  to  work.  Mr.  Whitaker, 
we  read,  sent  a hundred  head  of  cattle,  Mr. 
Joseph  Bryan  brought  four  sawyers,  Mrs.  Ann 
Drayton  also  four  sawyers,  Mrs.  Hammerton 
gave  a drum,  the  people  of  Edisto  sent  sixteen 
sheep,  the  assembly  voted  two  thousand  pounds, 
the  people  subscribed  one  thousand  pounds,  and 
Mr.  Hume  sent  a silver  bowl  and  spoon  as  a prize 
for  the  first  child  that  should  be  born. 

In  the  mild  climate,  and  with  the  soft  sea-air 
blowing  through  the  pines,  it  was  a sort  of  pic- 
nic foundation  of  a colony,  and  Oglethorpe  must 
have  thoroughly  enjoyed  it.  He  was  in  very 
much  the  same  position  as  William  Penn  when 
he  superintended  the  building  of  Philadelphia 
in  the  autumn  of  1682.  But  Oglethorpe  had 
the  advantage  of  occasional  trips  to  Charleston, 
where  we  find  that  he  was  entertained  on  one 
occasion  by  a public  dinner,  which  he  returned 
357 


Bankrupts,  Spaniards,  Mulberry-Trees 

by  giving  a ball  and  supper  to  the  ladies.  Soon 
after  he  celebrated  the  founding  of  Savannah, 
naming  the  streets  after  the  trustees  and  the 
benefactors  in  England,  as  well  as  the  Dray- 
tons, Bryans,  and  Whitakers  of  Carolina,  and 
concluding  with  a feast  for  all  the  people. 

Oglethorpe  also  resembled  Penn  in  his  judi- 
cious treatment  of  the  Indians.  At  the  same 
time  his  military  training  led  him  to  establish 
Fort  Argyle,  near  the  passes  by  which  they  had 
formerly  invaded  Carolina.  He  took  similar 
precautions  along  the  coast  towards  the  south  as 
a defence  against  the  Spaniards,  and  fortified 
Savannah  with  palisades  and  cannon.  Every- 
thing seemed  to  flourish  under  his  wise  manage- 
ment, he  settled  differences  among  the  people, 
and  met  with  the  same  success  that  Penn  had 
enjoyed  in  this  respeft  so  long  as  he  maintained 
a personal  supervision  of  his  colony. 

New  settlers  continued  to  arrive.  The  trus- 
tees in  England  obtained  from  Parliament  a 
grant  of  ten  thousand  pounds  from  the  sale  of 
lands  in  the  island  of  St.  Christopher,  which 
was  part  of  the  money  Berkeley  had  hoped  to 
obtain  for  his  college  in  the  Bermudas.  A 
botanist,  aided  by  subscriptions  from  the  Earl 
of  Derby  and  the  Duke  of  Richmond,  was  sent 
to  scour  the  Madeiras,  the  West  Indies,  and 
South  America  for  suitable  plants  for  Georgia. 

358 


Bankrupts,  Spaniards,  Mulberry-Trees 

Olives,  madder,  and  all  kinds  of  strange  plants 
soon  arrived,  and  Oglethorpe  laid  out  a traft  of 
ten  acres  for  experiments  with  them.  Assisted 
by  the  Society  for  the  Propagation  of  the  Gospel, 
the  trustees  sent  over  some  families  of  Salz- 
burgers, who  had  roused  the  sympathies  of  all 
Protestants  by  the  persecutions  they  had  suffered 
in  Germany,  and  they  established  a settlement 
in  Georgia  which  they  called  Ebenezer. 

After  spending  a year  and  a half  with  his 
people,  Oglethorpe  returned  to  England  like  a 
conqueror,  bringing  with  him  ten  Indians,  who 
were  presented  to  the  trustees  and  the  king, 
entertained  by  the  nobility,  and  carried  about 
England  as  tourists  to  see  the  colleges,  palaces, 
and  churches.  Oglethorpe  himself  was  received 
by  the  king  with  every  mark  of  respeft,  and  at 
a grand  entertainment  he  told  the  story  of 
Georgia  and  its  brilliant  prospefts.  All  Eng- 
land was  stirred  with  enthusiasm.  Four  prizes 
were  offered  for  the  best  poem  on  “The  Chris- 
tian Hero and  the  first  prize  was  a gold 
medal,  having  on  one  side  the  head  of  Lady 
Hastings,  one  of  the  most  liberal  of  the  sub- 
scribers, and  on  the  other  the  head  of  Ogle- 
thorpe, with  the  motto,  “ England  may  chal- 
lenge the  world.”  Pope  expressed  the  feelings 
of  the  people  and  immortalized  the  hero  in  his 
verse : 

359 


Bankrupts,  Spaniards,  Mulberry-Trees 

“ Hail,  Oglethorpe!  with  nobler  triumphs  crowned 
Than  ever  were  in  camps  or  sieges  found, 

Thy  great  example  shall  thro’  ages  shine, 

A fav’rite  theme  with  poet  and  divine. 

People  unborn  thy  merits  shall  proclaim, 

And  add  new  honors  to  thy  deathless  name.” 


Applications  poured  in  upon  the  trustees  from 
all  parts  of  Europe,  and  Parliament  voted  twenty- 
six  thousand  pounds  to  fortify  Georgia  against 
the  Spaniards  and  also  against  the  French,  who 
were  beginning  to  encroach  from  the  direction 
of  Louisiana.  The  examination  of  the  trustees 
into  the  character  of  applicants  was  so  thorough 
that  many  were  rejected  ; and  others  were  re- 
fused from  lack  of  funds  to  assist  them.  In 
faft,  the  original  plan  of  emptying  the  debtor 
prisons  upon  Georgia  was  largely  abandoned, 
because  it  was  found  that  those  who  proved 
themselves  worthless  in  England  were  not  much 
changed  by  the  voyage  to  Georgia.  The  emi- 
grants were  now  picked  bankrupts  and  men  from 
Scotland  and  the  persecuted  Germans  on  the 
Continent,  and  among  these  were  a number  of 
Moravians.  Hardihood,  religious  zeal,  and  strift 
morals  were  the  characteristics  of  a large  part  of 
“the  great  embarkation”  which  was  prepared  to 
return  with  Oglethorpe. 

The  care  with  which  these  people  were  pro- 
vided by  the  trustees  with  everything  necessary 
360 


Bankrupts,  Spaniards,  Mulberry-Trees 

to  start  them  on  careers  of  prosperity  was  most 
extraordinary.  Every  man  was  to  receive  for 
one  year  certain  allowances  which  are  most  mi- 
nutely described,  beginning  with  “312  lbs.  of 
beef  or  pork,  104  lbs.  of  rice,”  and  running 
through  a long  list  of  articles  down  to  “12 
quarts  of  lamp  oil,  1 lb.  of  spun  cotton  and  12 
lbs.  of  soap.”  Similar  allowances  were  pro- 
vided for  every  woman  ; children  over  seven  and 
under  twelve  received  half  an  allowance,  and 
those  over  two  and  under  seven,  one-third  allow- 
ance. On  the  voyage  out  the  people  were  to 
have  every  week  four  beef  days,  two  pork  days, 
and  one  fish  day.  Besides  all  this,  there  were 
allowances  of  blankets,  bolsters,  trousers,  frocks, 
shoes,  and  long  lists  of  the  best  tools  and  imple- 
ments, enough  to  make  one  wish  he  could,  even 
in  these  modern  times,  share  the  bounty  of  those 
trustees. 

A man-of-war  accompanied  “ the  great  em- 
barkation” as  a consort.  Oglethorpe  declined 
to  live  with  the  naval  officers,  and  took  quarters 
on  one  of  the  emigrant  ships,  which  the  histo- 
rians describe  as  an  heroic  sacrifice  ; but,  in  view 
of  the  beef,  pork,  and  fish  days,  it  could  not 
have  been  a very  great  deprivation.  On  shore 
he  delighted  the  Scotch  Highlanders  by  dressing 
in  their  costume  and  sleeping  on  the  ground 
wrapped  in  a plaid  when  he  could  have  had 
361 


Bankrupts,  Spaniards,  Mulberry-Trees 

a comfortable  bed  with  fresh  linen  sheets  in  a 
tent. 

He  immediately  exerted  himself  to  fortify 
the  colony  against  the  Spaniards,  and  laid  out 
elaborate  works  on  those  beautiful  islands,  St. 
Simon’s  and  Jekyl,  which  are  now  the  delight  of 
winter  tourists  and  sportsmen.  One  small  island 
in  the  neighborhood  of  these  fortifications  was 
called  by  the  Spaniards  San  Pedro  ; but  one  of 
the  Indians  who  had  been  in  England  took  from 
his  pocket  a handsome  gold  watch  that  had  been 
given  him  by  the  Duke  of  Cumberland,  and  re- 
quested that  the  island  should  be  named  after 
the  duke. 

And  so  the  happy  colonists  continued  scat- 
tering the  names  of  their  benefaftors  and  of  lord 
high  chancellors,  earls,  and  princes  of  the  blood 
royal  on  every  new  scene  that  pleased  their 
fancy.  A thousand  people  had  been  sent  out, 
fifty-seven  thousand  acres  had  been  granted  to 
settlers,  five  towns  had  been  established,  besides 
small  villages  and  forts,  and  all  done  with  the 
most  enlightened  judgment  of  the  best  and  great- 
est men  in  England. 

But  what  was  the  result  of  all  this  paternal- 
ism, and  what,  in  the  end,  became  of  all  the  se- 
lected English,  Scotch,  Germans,  Swiss,  Italians, 
Salzburgers,  Moravians,  and  Portuguese  Jews 
who  started  with  everything  in  their  favor? 

362 


Bankrupts,  Spaniards,  Mulberry-Trees 

Their  relations  with  South  Carolina  were  soon 
very  much  strained.  The  trustees  prohibited 
rum  from  entering  the  province,  and  wherever 
a cask  of  it  was  found  it  was  staved  by  their 
officials.  This  cut  off  a great  deal  of  trade 
which  the  Carolinians  had  hoped  to  gain,  and 
they  were  still  further  restrifted  by  a regulation 
which  forbade  all  traffic  with  the  Indians  except 
under  license  from  the  trustees.  From  that  time 
there  was  a strong  undercurrent  of  ill  will  among 
the  Carolinians  against  both  Georgia  and  Ogle- 
thorpe. 

The  colony  was  soon  involved  in  a most 
serious  conflift  with  the  Spaniards.  In  faff,  the 
settlement  of  Georgia,  instead  of  mitigating,  in- 
creased the  hostility  of  the  Spaniards  ; for  they 
claimed  Georgia  as  part  of  their  province  of 
Florida,  though  while  it  lay  unoccupied  between 
them  and  the  South  Carolinians  they  had  been 
comparatively  quiet.  But  as  the  English  wanted 
Georgia,  they  did  well  in  occupying  it,  and  Ogle- 
thorpe was  the  man  for  the  occasion. 

He  soon  realized  that  he  was  in  a position 
of  great  danger ; for  the  Spanish  government 
was  in  a state  of  high  irritation,  and  he  learned 
of  preparations  at  St.  Augustine.  He  was  so 
close  to  the  Spaniards,  and  Georgia  so  weak 
and  defenceless,  that  his  little  colony  might 
soon  be  annihilated.  He  carried  on  negotiations 

363 


Bankrupts,  Spaniards,  Mulberry-Trees 

with  the  governor  at  St.  Augustine,  and  at  the 
same  time,  with  the  art  he  had  learned  under 
Prince  Eugene,  so  disposed  his  troops  on  several 
occasions  as  to  give  the  impression  of  large 
numbers,  the  effeft  of  which,  however,  was  to 
increase  the  preparations  of  Spain.  Oglethorpe 
at  once  set  out  for  England,  where,  the  situation 
being  soon  fully  appreciated,  he  was  made  Gen- 
eral of  Georgia,  and  returned  to  the  province 
in  1738  with  a regiment. 

Spanish  spies  and  emissaries  were  now  every- 
where, even  in  the  regiment  which  Oglethorpe 
had  brought  with  him,  and  he  narrowly  escaped 
with  his  life.  Two  mutineers  shot  at  him  so 
close  at  hand  that  the  powder  of  one  musket 
burnt  his  face.  The  slaves  in  Carolina  were 
being  seduced,  and  the  insurreftion  among  them 
which  has  already  been  described  soon  took 
place.  A similar  danger  was  threatened  from 
the  Indian  tribes  ; but  Oglethorpe  made  a jour- 
ney among  them  of  nearly  three  hundred  miles, 
and  succeeded  in  securing  their  alliance.  On 
October  22,  1739,  war  was  formally  declared 
between  England  and  Spain,  and  Oglethorpe 
began  it  by  burning  Picolata  on  the  St.  John’s 
River  and  capturing  Fort  St.  Francis. 

About  the  same  time  the  plot  of  a German 
Jesuit,  Christian  Priber,  was  discovered.  He 
had  gone  among  the  Indians  in  the  interest  of 

364 


Bankrupts,  Spaniards,  Mulberry-Trees 

France,  with  the  intention  of  forming  a confed- 
eracy of  Indians,  French,  Germans,  and  runaway 
slaves  which  could  be  turned  upon  the  English 
settlements.  With  that  wonderful  skill  and  un- 
scrupulous subtlety  which  charadlerized  his  order 
in  that  age,  and  which  finally  led  to  its  abolition 
for  a time  even  in  Roman  Catholic  countries,  he 
gained  a complete  ascendency  over  the  Chero- 
kees,  crowning  the  chief  as  king  of  the  confed- 
eracy and  giving  flattering  titles  to  his  warriors. 
When  captured  and  brought  to  Georgia,  Ogle- 
thorpe found  that  although  dressed  in  deerskins  he 
was  a man  of  ability,  polished  manners,  and  the 
master  of  Latin,  French,  Spanish,  and  English. 

His  conversation,  papers,  and  a form  of  gov- 
ment  for  his  confederacy,  which  were  found 
upon  him,  revealed  that  he  intended  to  shelter 
criminals  and  tolerate  every  crime  except  mur- 
der and  idleness.  He  had  numerous  agents  and 
assistants  and  a secret  treasurer  in  Charleston. 
Marriages  were  to  be  dissolved  at  will,  women 
to  be  common  property,  and  general  licentious- 
ness to  be  allowed  in  his  government.  This 
was  to  attract  numbers,  and,  as  he  explained,  was 
only  a means  to  an  end.  “We  never  lose  sight 
of  a favorite  point/’  he  said,  “ nor  are  we  bound 
by  the  strift  rules  of  morality  in  the  means,  when 
the  end  we  pursue  is  laudable.  If  we  err,  our 
general  is  to  blame  ; and  we  have  a merciful  God 
365 


Bankrupts,  Spaniards,  Mulberry-Trees 

to  pardon  us.”  He  died  in  prison  before  he 
could  be  executed,  and  in  the  mean  time  de- 
lighted all  who  visited  him  by  his  talents  and 
accomplishments. 

Oglethorpe  next  planned  an  elaborate  attack 
on  St.  Augustine  with  the  regiment  he  had 
brought  from  England,  several  companies  of 
Highlanders  and  Indians,  and  a regiment  from 
South  Carolina,  under  Colonel  Vander  Deusen. 
He  had  altogether  nine  hundred  troops  and 
eleven  hundred  Indians,  and  was  to  be  assisted 
by  a fleet  of  men-of-war.  He  intended  to  take 
the  place  by  assault;  but  the  Spanish  galleys 
prevented  the  fleet  from  assisting,  and  he  was 
compelled  to  turn  his  attack  into  a siege.  He 
bombarded  the  fort  for  twenty  days,  and  had 
nearly  starved  out  the  garrison  when  they  were 
relieved  by  supplies  from  Spanish  vessels.  It 
was  the  middle  of  July,  the  Indians  were  tired 
of  the  long  siege,  the  white  men  were  sickening 
in  the  hot  sun,  and  the  fleet,  fearing  the  hurri- 
cane season,  would  remain  no  longer.  The 
siege  was  reluftantly  abandoned  ; but  the  Span- 
iards lost  over  four  hundred  killed  and  prisoners, 
while  the  English  loss  was  only  about  fifty,  and 
Georgia  had  a respite  from  the  Spaniards  for 
two  years. 

At  the  end  of  that  time  they  attacked  Ogle- 
thorpe in  his  fort  at  Frederica,  on  St.  Simon’s 
366 


Bankrupts,  Spaniards,  Mulberry-Trees 

Island,  with  an  overwhelming  force ; but  an 
ambuscade  of  Highlanders  and  Indians  fell  on 
their  rear,  and  Oglethorpe,  taking  advantage  of 
their  confusion,  routed  them  completely.  Soon 
after,  by  a most  ingenious  letter  sent  to  a 
Frenchman  who  had  deserted  to  the  Spaniards, 
he  managed  to  give  them  an  impression  that  he 
was  about  to  receive  large  reinforcements,  and 
they  all  fled  back  to  St.  Augustine.  This 
ended  the  struggle,  and  Georgia  and  South 
Carolina  were  now  secured  for  England. 

Oglethorpe  had  been  bitterly  attacked  for  his 
failure  at  the  siege  of  St.  Augustine,  especially 
by  the  Carolinians,  who  attempted  to  build  up 
the  reputation  of  their  own  soldier,  Vander 
Deusen,  on  the  ruin  of  Oglethorpe.  But  now 
Oglethorpe  was  receiving  letters  of  congratula- 
tion from  all  the  British  colonies,  and  had  be- 
come one  of  the  great  men  of  England. 

He  soon  left  Georgia,  never  to  return.  The 
struggle  with  Spain  and  the  siege  of  St.  Augus- 
tine had  brought  him  enemies  in  Georgia  as 
well  as  in  South  Carolina,  and  he  was  tried  by 
court-martial  in  England  for  the  failure  of  the 
siege,  but  triumphantly  acquitted.  He  was  of 
an  impatient,  hasty  temper,  rather  fond  of 
boasting,  and  with  a very  keen  sense  of  per- 
sonal dignity.  These  faults  were  continually 
involving  him  in  difficulties,  in  spite  of  his  great 

367 


Bankrupts,  Spaniards,  Mulberry-Trees 

merit.  He  had  been  in  the  habit  of  drawing 
bills  of  exchange  on  the  British  government  for 
the  expenses  of  his  campaigns,  dnd,  while  most 
of  these  were  paid,  some  were  not ; so  that  he 
not  only  served  as  governor  and  general  without 
salary  or  reward,  but  was  seriously  injured  in 
his  private  fortune  by  his  self-sacrifice. 

In  1745,  when  the  Pretender  invaded  Eng- 
land, Oglethorpe  was  court-martialled  for  what 
was  supposed  to  be  a lack  of  energy  in  pur- 
suing some  of  the  rebels.  He  was  acquitted, 
and  in  time  became  lieutenant-general  of  the 
British  army,  and  afterwards  general.  He  served 
in  Parliament,  was  the  delight  of  literary  men, 
and  the  friend  of  Johnson,  Goldsmith,  Burke, 
and  Hannah  More.  He  lived  to  a great  age, 
and  could  remember  when,  as  a boy,  he  had 
shot  snipe  on  what  had  become  Conduit  Street 
in  London.  He  saw  the  colony  he  founded  be- 
come an  independent  State.  In  the  Revolution 
he  refused  to  take  a part  in  coercing  the  Amer- 
icans ; declared  that  he  knew  them,  and  that  they 
could  never  be  subdued  ; and  when  John  Adams 
came  to  London  as  the  ambassador  from  the 
United  States,  Oglethorpe  was  one  of  the  first 
to  call  upon  him. 

“ I have  got  a new  admirer  ” writes  Hannah  More  in  one 
of  her  letters,  “ and  we  flirt  together  prodigiously.  It  is 
the  famous  General  Oglethorpe,  perhaps  the  most  remark- 
368 


Bankrupts,  Spaniards,  Mulberry-Trees 

able  man  of  his  time.  He  is  the  foster  brother  of  the 
Pretender,  and  much  above  ninety  years  old.  The  finest 
figure  you  ever  saw.  He  frequently  realizes  all  my  ideas 
of  Nestor.  His  literature  is  great;  his  knowledge  of  the 
world  extensive ; and  his  faculties  as  bright  as  ever.  . . . 
He  is  quite  a preux  chevalier — heroic,  romantic,  and  full  of 
the  old  gallantry.” 

As  an  encroachment  on  the  Spanish  posses- 
sions the  planting  of  Georgia  was  a wise  meas- 
ure, but  as  a colony  it  was  by  no  means  a 
success.  The  war  had  driven  away  some  of 
the  original  settlers  and  deterred  immigrants. 
Those  that  remained — an  incongruous  mixture  of 
several  nations — are  described  as  “ ignorant  of 
their  true  interest  and  cursed  with  a spirit  of 
dissension.”  The  trustees  were  unable  to  make 
suitable  laws  for  them,  and  the  attempt  to  ad- 
minister any  laws  at  all  was  even  a greater 
failure.  While  Oglethorpe  was  present,  all 
authority  centred  in  him,  and  his  vigor  and 
power  of  command  enforced  obedience.  But 
he  was  often  absent  in  England  or  fighting  the 
Spaniards,  and  the  authority  was  in  Causton,  the 
store-keeper  who  distributed  the  supplies  which 
the  trustees  sent  out.  By  giving  or  withhold- 
ing provisions  he  soon  became  an  arrogant  dic- 
tator, and  absorbed  the  power  of  all  the  other 
officials.  When  he  was  finally  dismissed,  the 
petty  magistrates  who  were  appointed  made  still 
Vol.  ii. — 24  369 


Bankrupts,  Spaniards,  Mulberry-Trees 

worse  confusion,  which  the  excellent  trustees 
tried  to  obviate  by  sending  out  purple  gowns 
edged  with  fur  for  bailiffs  and  a black  tufted  one 
for  the  recorder. 

But  nothing  could  stop  the  disorder,  and  we 
find  the  magistrates  charged  with  blasphemy, 
drunkenness,  false  imprisonment,  threatening 
juries,  obstruiling  the  course  of  the  law,  and  gen- 
eral corruption.  The  trustees  did  their  best  in 
changing  the  form  of  government,  but  they  were 
really  powerless,  and  could  do  nothing  with  the 
people,  who  their  own  historians  admit  were 
utterly  lacking  in  unity,  morality,  industry,  and 
social  integrity. 

In  “ the  great  embarkation”  Oglethorpe  had 
brought  out  with  him  Charles  Wesley  and  John 
Wesley,  the  founders  of  Methodism.  Charles 
was  Oglethorpe’s  private  secretary  and  chaplain, 
and  John  was  the  missionary  for  the  colony. 
These  young  men  were  then  fresh  from  Oxford, 
learned  in  languages,  literature,  and  science,  and 
full  of  the  most  ardent  enthusiasm.  They  were 
clergymen  of  the  Church  of  England,  and  had 
not  yet  begun  that  course  of  thought  and  con- 
duit which  afterwards  made  them  dissenters. 
The  philanthropy  and  glorious  possibilities  of 
Georgia  were  well  calculated  to  fire  their 
imaginations.  The  English  Church  and  thou- 
sands of  the  most  important  religious  people 
370 


Bankrupts,  Spaniards,  Mulberry-Trees 

in  England  were  deeply  interested  in  the  new 
province. 

There  were  at  different  times  nine  clergy- 
men among  the  trustees.  More  than  one  hun- 
dred churches  took  up  collections  for  the  enter- 
prise, and  the  Archbishop  of  Canterbury,  bishops, 
and  numerous  collegiate  and  parochial  clergy 
gave  liberally.  We  read  that  one  hundred  and 
fifteen  Bibles,  one  hundred  and  sixteen  prayer- 
books,  seventy-two  psalters,  three  hundred  and 
twelve  catechisms,  fifty-six  “ Gibson’s  Family 
Devotions,”  and  four  hundred  and  thirty  other 
religious  books  were  put  on  board  the  first  ship 
that  carried  out  the  emigrants,  and  within  the 
next  two  years  over  two  thousand  six  hundred 
Bibles  and  religious  books  were  sent  out.  In 
faft,  there  were  more  books  of  devotion  than 
there  were  people  ; and  if  sincere  effort  alone 
could  have  made  a province  religious  and  moral, 
Georgia  would  have  been  the  home  of  saints 
as  well  as  the  source  of  boundless  wealth  to 
England. 

The  W esleys  remained  scarcely  two  years,  and, 
in  spite  of  their  unusual  ability,  cannot  be  said  to 
have  accomplished  anything.  But  although  they 
made  no  definite  impression  on  the  province,  the 
province  made  a deep  impression  on  them,  and 
it  is  probable  that  they  learned  there  the  most 
important  lessons  of  their  lives. 

37i 


Bankrupts,  Spaniards,  Mulberry-Trees 

They  knew  nothing  of  the  world,  and  from 
childhood  they  had  associated  only  with  learned 
and  academic  people.  They  could  hold  ser- 
vices and  preach  in  English,  French,  German, 
and  Italian,  and  they  were  familiar  with 
Hebrew,  Arabic,  and  Spanish.  Finding  that 
their  letters  were  often  intercepted  and  opened 
in  Georgia,  they  corresponded  with  each  other 
in  Greek,  and  when  they  feared  eavesdrop- 
ping, they  conversed  in  Fatin.  They  were 
totally  devoid  of  ta£l  and  even  common  discre- 
tion ; and,  like  young  men  fresh  from  college 
in  our  own  time,  they  intended  to  reform  the 
whole  human  race,  and  they  rushed  headlong 
at  every  evil  the  moment  they  saw  it.  Thrown 
suddenly  into  a wilderness,  among  people  of 
gross  immorality  and  offensive  manners,  they 
were  taught  sharply,  but  quickly  and  thoroughly, 
the  one  lesson  they  needed  to  make  their  intellect, 
learning,  and  eloquence  a living  and  practical 
force. 

One  of  their  first  experiences  was  with  two 
coarse  women  of  soiled  virtue  who  they  sup- 
posed had  repented,  and  they  persuaded  Ogle- 
thorpe to  accept  them  as  respectable.  They 
then  attempted  to  reform  the  other  female  colo- 
nists and  reconcile  their  feuds.  John  was  soon 
in  love  with  a designing  creature,  Sophy  Hop- 
kins ; but,  being  warned  by  his  friends  and  the 
372 


Bankrupts,  Spaniards,  Mulberry-Trees 

Moravians,  he  broke  off  his  engagement  with 
her,  and  within  eight  days  she  married  a man 
named  Williamson.  Soon  after,  John  in  his 
straightforward  manner  rebuked  her  for  some- 
thing reprehensible  in  her  conduit,  and  later 
refused  to  administer  the  communion  to  her. 

The  whole  colony,  which  was  composed  largely 
of  the  sort  of  people  who  are  pettily  malicious 
and  vindi&ive,  was  now  arrayed  against  the  two 
brothers,  and  they  were  charged  with  a long  list 
of  offences  which  it  is  not  necessary  to  repeat. 
Charles  lost  the  favor  of  Oglethorpe,  and  it  was 
suspefted  at  one  time  that  the  people  intended  to 
get  rid  of  him  by  violence.  His  former  friends 
refused  to  speak  to  him,  his  servants  would  not 
work  for  him,  he  had  to  sleep  on  the  ground, 
and  when  in  a raging  fever  could  scarcely  get  a 
bedstead  to  lie  upon.  John  passed  through  a 
similar  ordeal,  was  arrested  on  trumped-up 
charges,  and  finally  had  difficulty  in  getting 
away  to  England. 

Other  zealous  clergymen  had  like  experiences, 
and  left  in  disgust.  Others  remained  and  accom- 
plished something.  Among  these  was  George 
Whitefield,  who  took  part  with  the  Wesleys  in 
the  rise  of  Methodism.  He  succeeded  in  estab- 
lishing an  orphan  asylum  ; but  before  long  he 
drifted  away  to  his  real  work  of  revivalism  in 
all  the  colonies. 


373 


Bankrupts,  Spaniards,  Mulberry-Trees 

The  prohibition  of  rum  and  negro  slavery 
was  another  cause  of  trouble.  The  rum  was 
smuggled  into  the  province,  there  was  a great 
deal  of  drunkenness,  and  the  demoralization  was 
increased  by  the  evasion  of  the  law  and  the  fruit- 
less efforts  to  enforce  it.  A few  slaves  were 
also  smuggled,  and  the  people  were  always  clam- 
oring for  slavery,  so  that  they  might  compete  in 
prosperity  with  South  Carolina.  The  raw  silk, 
hemp,  wine,  olives,  and  drugs,  which  were  to 
make  Georgia  the  chief  supply  of  England  in 
these  commodities,  were  not  forthcoming,  al- 
though the  trustees  tried  in  every  way  to  com- 
pel the  people  to  raise  them.  They  would  not 
cultivate  them,  and  could  not  be  made  to  see  the 
advantage  of  it.  They  wanted  to  be  rice  and 
indigo  planters  like  the  Carolinians,  with  the 
assistance  of  slavery  ; and  for  fourteen  years — 
from  1735  to  1749 — they  poured  petitions  and 
remonstrances  on  the  trustees  and  the  British 
Parliament. 

Every  other  British  colony,  they  said,  was 
allowed  slaves,  and  slavery  was  admitted  to  be 
the  pillar  and  support  of  the  British  plantation 
trade  in  America.  But  the  trustees  were  inflex- 
ible. They  wished  the  colony  to  be  a bulwark 
against  the  Spaniards  and  the  Indians.  Every 
slave  that  was  introduced  into  it  would  be  a 
weakness,  and  might  be  turned  into  a most 
374 


Bankrupts,  Spaniards,  Mulberry  Trees 

dangerous  enemy.  They  wished  the  colony  to 
produce  wine  and  silk,  which  could  be  culti- 
vated only  by  the  skilled  and  intelligent  labor  of 
white  men.  They  wished  the  colony  to  be  the 
refuge  of  worthy  insolvents,  and  these  had  not 
the  capital  either  to  purchase  or  maintain  slaves. 
They  wished  the  colonists  to  labor  with  their 
own  hands,  assisted  only  by  white  indentured 
servants  bound  to  labor  for  a term  of  years. 
The  introdu&ion  of  negroes  would  make  all 
manual  labor  degrading,  and  encourage  the  very 
vice  and  idleness  from  which  the  colonists  had 
been  delivered  by  bringing  them  to  America. 

But  nearly  every  one  who  lived  in  the  prov- 
ince was  convinced  that  without  slavery  it  would 
continue  to  be  a failure,  and  would  not  even 
have  enough  white  people  in  it  to  resist  the 
Spaniards.  It  had  been  founded  fifteen  years, 
and  had  hardly  fifteen  hundred  people.  There 
was  scarcely  a planter  who  could  support  his 
family  with  his  own  produce.  The  climate 
was  so  hot  and  unhealthy  that  from  April  to 
Oftober  no  white  man  could  work  in  the  fields. 
The  white  indentured  servants  would  not  work, 
even  if  they  could.  They  were  refraflory, 
filled  with  wild  ideas  of  liberty,  and  near  enough 
to  Carolina  to  feel  that  manual  labor  was  a deg- 
radation. Those  who  were  willing  to  work 
were  sick  such  a large  part  of  the  year  that 
375 


Bankrupts,  Spaniards,  Mulberry-Trees 

they  cost  more  than  they  were  worth.  The 
consequence  was  that  the  people  largely  aban- 
doned the  cultivation  of  the  land,  and  hung 
about  the  towns,  drunken  and  dissolute,  living 
from  hand  to  mouth  by  any  occupation  they 
could  find  and  the  supplies  from  the  trustees’ 
storehouse.  Many  had  already  left  the  prov- 
ince, and  soon  all  of  them  would  go. 

Among  the  most  urgent  in  favor  of  slavery 
was  Whitefield.  Oglethorpe  was  not  conspicu- 
ous in  the  controversy.  He  regarded  slavery  as 
an  evil,  and  had  said  that  it  was  “ against  the 
Gospel  and  the  fundamental  law  of  England  ; 
we  refused  as  trustees  to  make  a law  permitting 
such  a horrid  crime.”  But  he  had  a plantation 
and  slaves  of  his  own  in  South  Carolina.  The 
trustees  were  also  interested  in  one  way  or  an- 
other in  the  slave-trade.  Whitefield  had  in 
Carolina  a slave  plantation,  from  the  proceeds 
of  which  he  supported  his  orphan  asylum  in 
Georgia ; and  one  of  his  letters  on  the  subject 
of  slavery  is  one  of  the  most  curious  and  frank 
confessions  of  mixed  motive  that  have  ever  been 
written  : 

“ As  for  the  lawfulness  of  keeping  slaves  I have  no 
doubt.  It  is  plain  hot  countries  cannot  be  cultivated 
without  negroes.  What  a flourishing  country  Georgia 
might  have  been  had  the  use  of  them  been  permitted  years 
ago ! . . . Though  it  is  true  they  are  brought  in  a wrong 
376 


Bankrupts,  Spaniards,  Mulberry-Trees 

way  from  their  own  country  and  it  is  a trade  not  to  be  ap- 
proved of,  yet  as  it  will  be  carried  on  whether  we  will  or 
not,  I should  think  myself  highly  favored  if  I could  pur- 
chase a good  number  of  them  in  order  to  make  their  lives 
comfortable,  and  lay  a foundation  for  breeding  up  their 
posterity  in  the  nurture  and  admonition  of  the  Lord.  I 
had  no  hand  in  bringing  them  into  Georgia,  though  my 
judgment  was  for  it.  . . . It  rejoiced  my  soul  to  hear  that 
one  of  my  poor  negroes  in  Carolina  was  made  a brother  in 
Christ.”  ( Tyerman  s Life  of  John  Wesley,  vol.  ii.  p.  132.) 

Some  of  the  Scotch  Highlanders  and  the 
Salzburgers  seemed  able  to  work  in  spite  of  the 
climate,  and  were  opposed  to  the  introdu&ion 
of  slaves.  A few  otliers  who  were  energetic 
hired  slaves  from  South  Carolina  planters,  on 
the  understanding  that  if  the  law  was  enforced 
they  would  come  over  and  claim  their  property. 
The  majority  of  the  people,  however,  continued 
their  petitions,  and  in  1742  sent  over  Thomas 
Stephens  to  represent  them  before  Parliament. 
An  elaborate  investigation  by  Parliament  and 
the  trustees  followed,  all  sides  and  opinions 
were  heard,  and  the  whole  question  carefully 
considered.  The  restriction  on  rum  was  re- 
moved, but  the  request  for  slavery  was  denied, 
and  Stephens  was  ordered  to  be  reprimanded 
on  his  knees  before  the  House  of  Commons  for 
having  brought  a scandalous  petition  tending  to 
asperse  the  characters  of  the  trustees. 

The  people,  however,  were  not  appeased. 

377 


Bankrupts,  Spaniards,  Mulberry-Trees 

During  the  next  few  years  their  indignation 
was  so  great  as  to  threaten  rebellion  or  the 
abandonment  of  the  province,  and  in  1749  the 
trustees  and  Parliament  yielded  and  slavery  was 
allowed. 

The  next  year,  1750,  in  the  hope  of  intro- 
ducing some  order  among  the  people,  the  trustees 
allowed  them  to  have  a representative  assembly, 
which,  though  it  could  not  enaft  laws,  might 
propose  them  for  ena&ment  by  the  trustees. 
But  no  one  could  be  a member  of  this  assembly 
unless  he  had  planted  a certain  number  of  mul- 
berry-trees to  feed  the  silk-worms. 

The  people  seemed  to  have  been  somewhat 
encouraged  and  improved  by  this  sham  of  repre- 
sentative government ; but  the  twenty-one  years 
at  the  end  of  which  the  charter  must  be  surren- 
dered to  the  crown  had  almost  expired,  and  the 
trustees,  wearied  and  disgusted  with  their  labors, 
surrendered  it  in  1752,  some  months  before  the 
full  completion  of  the  term. 

The  crown  immediately  established  the  ordi- 
nary colonial  government  of  governor,  governor’s 
council,  and  assembly  of  the  people,  and  the 
effeft  of  this,  combined  with  rum  and  negro 
slavery,  was  soon  apparent.  The  people  had 
what  they  wanted  at  last.  Plantations  were  cul- 
tivated, vessels  came  to  trade,  and  Georgia 
settled  down  to  the  development  of  her  natural 
378 


Bankrupts,  Spaniards,  Mulberry-Trees 

resources,  which,  like  those  of  Carolina,  were 
pitch,  tar,  lumber,  rice,  and  deerskins. 

The  growth,  however,  was  very  slow,  and 
Georgia. was  the  smallest  of  all  the  colonies. 
When  the  trustees  surrendered  their  charter  in 
1752  there  were  scarcely  five  thousand  white 
people  in  the  province.  Ten  years  of  royal 
rule  increased  the  whites  only  by  about  a thou- 
sand ; but  as  slaves  had  been  allowed  since  1749, 
the  total  population  was  about  nine  thousand. 
The  next  ten  or  fifteen  years  were  more  pros- 
perous, and  at  the  outbreak  of  the  Revolution 
there  were  about  twenty-five  thousand  whites 
and  twenty  thousand  negroes.  After  the  Revolu- 
tion, in  1790,  the  whole  population,  white  and 
black,  was  over  eighty  thousand. 

But  throughout  the  colonial  period,  and  even 
in  the  next  century,  Georgia  was  a most  dis- 
orderly commonwealth,  filled  with  such  anarchy 
and  confusion  that  neither  government  nor  justice 
could  be  administered.  When  an  attempt  was 
made  to  hold  court,  it  was  found  necessary  at 
times  to  conduft  the  judges  from  place  to  place 
by  an  armed  guard. 

The  people  near  the  frontier  were  generally 
considered  the  most  lawless  on  the  continent, 
idle,  drunken,  wandering  about  in  bands  to 
plunder  both  Indians  and  whites  ; and  those  in 
the  interior  and  along  the  coast  were  not  much 
379 


Bankrupts,  Spaniards,  Mulberry-Trees 

better.  In  1784,  when  there  was  to  be  a dis- 
tribution of  land-warrants,  the  people  rushed 
into  the  office,  seizing  the  warrants  for  them- 
selves and  carrying  them  off.  The  plantations 
and  farms  were  usually  small.  Near  the  coast 
were  some  large  ones,  and  some  of  the  planters 
were  men  of  respectability,  leading  a life  some- 
what similar  to  that  of  the  great  planters  of 
Carolina.  But  the  attempt  to  build  up  a decent 
community  with  English  bankrupts  and  a mixed 
population  was  a distinft  failure,  and  almost  a 
century  passed  before  the  peculiarities  of  these 
people  were  reduced  to  a minimum,  and  Georgia 
could  take  a proper  position  among  the  States  of 
the  Union. 


INDEX 

Abolitionists  of  Massachusetts,  i.  229. 

Acadians  in  Maryland,  ii.  241,  244. 

Adams,  Charles  Francis,  i.  210. 

Adams,  John,  i.  192,  369  j ii.  326. 

Adams,  Mrs.  John,  i.  289. 

Adams,  Samuel,  ii.  326. 

Albany,  life  in,  ii.  115-119,  123-127. 

Allen,  Ethan,  i.  336-339. 

Amidas,  Captain,  ii.  256. 

Andros,  Sir  Edmund,  i.  163,  258  ; ii.  97. 

Annapolis,  importance  of,  ii.  205—210. 

Archdale,  John,  ii.  286. 

Argali,  Captain,  i.  30;  ii.  22. 

Arnold,  Benedift,  i.  290,  295. 

Axilia,  Margravate  of,  ii.  348. 

Bacon,  Nathaniel,  rebellion  of,  i.  44—56. 

Baltimore,  Lord.  See  Calvert. 

Baltimore,  town  of,  ii.  243,  245. 

Barclay,  Robert,  i.  384. 

Barlow,  Captain,  ii.  256. 

Bellamont,  Lord,  ii.  84,  280,  281. 

Berkeley,  Bishop,  ii.  354. 

Berkeley,  Sir  William,  i.  30,  48-55,  64;  ii.  168,  174. 

381 


Index 


Black,  William,  ii.  210. 

Blackbeard  the  pirate,  ii.  283. 

Blanchard,  Claude,  i.  80,  319. 

Block,  Adriaen,  ii.  14. 

Bogardus,  Anneke,  ii.  58. 

Bogardus,  Dominie,  ii.  30,  43,  52. 

Boiseau,  ii.  265. 

Bonnett,  Steed,  ii.  285. 

Booksellers  in  Massachusetts,  i.  219. 

Bordley,  John  Beale,  ii.  214,  215. 

Bordley,  Thomas,  ii.  231. 

Braddock,  General,  ii.  98,  136,  241,  244,  302. 
Bradstreet,  Anne,  i.  228. 

Brissot,  i.  80,  95. 

Brooklyn,  founding  of,  ii.  19. 

Bundling,  i.  180,  284-290. 

Burgesses,  House  of,  in  Virginia,  i.  40. 

Burnaby,  Rev.  Dr.,  i.  80,  91,  181,  284. 

Burr,  Aaron,  i.  290. 

Byrd,  Colonel  William,  i.  74,  109,  110. 

Cabot,  John  and  Sebastian,  discovery  of  North  America 
by,  i.  j 8 ; ii.  1 1 , 12,  66. 

Calhoun,  John  C.,  ii.  257,  343. 

Calvert,  Benedict  Leonard,  ii.  236,  237. 

Calvert,  Cecil,  ii.  148,  154,  160,  169,  17 1 , 172,  173,  175, 
182,  193,  195,  197,  239. 

Calvert,  Charles,  ii.  180,  193,  196,  198,  201,  235,  237. 
Calvert,  Frederick,  ii.  240. 

Calvert,  George,  ii.  147,  149,  151,  152. 

Calvert,  Leonard,  ii.  163,  165,  167,  169. 

Calvert,  Philip,  ii.  180. 

Cannibalism  in  Virginia,  i.  29. 

Card-playing  in  Boston,  i.  191  ; in  Virginia,  i.  78,  81. 

382 


Index 


Carolina,  ii.  251-346;  grant  of,  251  ; attractions  of,  253- 
257;  Indians  of,  254 ; Locke’s  constitution  for,  268. 
See  South  Carolina  and  North  Carolina. 

Carroll,  Charles,  ii.  201,  206,  213,  245,  246,  248. 

Carteret,  Philip,  i.  379. 

Carteret,  Sir  George,  i.  380;  ii.  252. 

Catholics,  Roman,  dislike  of,  by  the  Dutch,  ii.  84;  over- 
thrown in  Maryland,  198  ; their  position  in  Mary- 
land and  other  colonies,  215-229,  237,  240,  242. 

Cavaliers  come  to  Virginia,  i.  32;  influence  of,  in  Vir- 
ginia, 64. 

Cazenove,  ii.  144. 

Charleston,  importance  of,  ii.  270;  a walled  town,  280. 

Charter  Oak  of  Connecticut,  i.  258. 

Chase,  Judge,  ii.  245-248. 

Chastellux,  Marquis  de,  i.  75,  78,  79,  80,  89,  92,  98, 
100,  101,  190,  280-283,  369. 

Chicheley,  Sir  Henry,  i.  47,  51. 

Child,  Robert,  i.  144. 

Church  of  England  in  Maryland,  ii.  194,  204,  229,  230; 
in  Massachusetts,  i.  186-188;  in  South  Carolina,  ii. 
271  ; in  Virginia,  i.  59,  60-63;  corruption  of  its 
clergy,  i.  61-63;  23°- 

Clayborne,  William,  ii.  167,  169,  170,  172,  174,  175, 
176. 

Cleanliness  in  colonial  times,  ii.  55. 

Clothes,  laws  about,  i.  185. 

Clubs  in  Boston,  i.  191  ; in  Annapolis,  ii.  207. 

Cock-fighting  in  Virginia,  i.  100. 

Colonel,  title  of,  in  Virginia,  i.  41. 

Columbus,  ii.  10. 

Commerce  in  Virginia,  i.  33;  in  Massachusetts,  215;  in 
Rhode  Island,  218;  in  Connecticut,  277;  in  Mary- 
land, ii.  239;  in  South  Carolina,  306,  315,  335. 

383 


Index 


Communism  in  Virginia,  i.  24,  31. 

Connedlicut,  i.  243-302 ; towns  of,  246  ; government  of, 
246;  constitution  of,  247;  toleration  of,  247,  264; 
charter  of,  253,  257;  moderation  of,  260,  267;  pop- 
ulation of,  261  ; influence  of,  on  other  States,  262; 
Unitarianism  in,  267;  Church  of  England  in,  267; 
life  and  manners  in,  268,  279;  morals  in,  280; 
bundling  in,  284—290;  Dutch  control  of,  ii.  37,  65. 
Convifts  in  Virginia,  i.  65;  in  Maryland,  ii.  231  ; in 
Massachusetts,  i.  212. 

Corey,  Giles,  i.  171. 

Cornbury,  Lord,!.  386;  ii.  103. 

Cotton  in  South  Carolina,  ii.  334. 

Cotton,  John,  i.  137,  150. 

Crevecceur,  i.  80;  ii.  31 1,  312. 

Dankers,  i.  80. 

Decatur,  Stephen,  ii.  250. 

Delaware,  i.  340. 

De  Leon,  Ponce,  ii.  255. 

Dc  Vries,  ii.  27,  29,  33,  35,  38,  40,  42,  48. 

Dickinson,  John,  i.  353. 

Dongan,  Colonel,  ii.  101. 

Dorr  rebellion  in  Rhode  Island,  i.  314. 

Drayton,  William  Henry,  ii.  237,  244. 

Dress,  excess  in,  i.  185. 

Duelling  in  South  Carolina,  ii.  336;  in  Virginia,  i.  114, 

1 1 5- 

Dulany,  Daniel,  ii.  248. 

Dunton,  John,  letters  of,  i.  178-184. 

Dupont,  Gideon,  ii.  334. 

Dutch,  energy  and  enterprise  of,  ii.  13  ; character  of,  15  ; 
on  the  Delaware,  37;  discover  New  York,  11  ; dif- 
ficulties with  the  Indians,  39,  48  ; title  of,  to  New 
384 


Index 


York,  11-13;  habits  of,  in  New  York,  54-60;  as 
frontiersmen,  119;  in  the  Revolution,  139;  land 
system  of,  140. 

Dyer,  Mary,  i.  159,  160. 

Earle,  Alice  Morse,  ii.  58,  59. 

East  Jersey,  settlement  of,  i.  379  ; life  in,  384. 

Education  in  Massachusetts,  i.  217;  in  Virginia,  69,  77, 
84,  103. 

Edwards,  Jonathan,  i.  287,  290,  295-302. 

Embarkation,  the  great,  ii.  360. 

Five  Nations,  the,  ii.  89-99. 

Foote,  Abigail,  i.  274,  289. 

Frankland,  Sir  Harry,  i.  193-203. 

Franklin  in  Massachusetts,!.  221. 

Franklin,  William,  i.  388. 

French,  prejudice  against  the,  in  Rhode  Island,  i.  322. 

Funerals,  extravagance  in,  i.  173,  375,  390. 

Georgia,  ii.  347-380;  charter  of,  349;  objects  of,  350; 
settlement  of,  356-358  ; failure  of,  as  a colony,  362, 
369,  379. 

Gorges,  i.  324,  325. 

Gorton,  i.  303,  305. 

Gouging  in  Virginia,  i.  97. 

Grant,  Mrs.,  description  of  life  among  the  Schuylers,  ii. 
128-139. 

Half-way  covenant,  i.  265. 

Hamilton,  Andrew,  ii.  no. 

Hartford,  colony  at,  i.  243. 

Hayne,  Colonel  Robert  Y.,  ii.  342. 

Heath,  Sir  Robert,  ii.  251,  252. 

a5  385 


Index 


Hooker,  founder  of  Connefticut,  i.  244,  245,  247,  265. 
Horse-racing  in  Maryland,  ii.  208. 

Huguenots  in  South  Carolina,  ii.  273,  286;  in  Virginia, 
i.  67. 

Humorous  traits  of  the  Puritans,  i.  205. 

Hutchinson,  Governor,  i.  187. 

Hutchinson,  Mrs.  Anne,  i.  152,  155-158,  160,  221  ; ii.  46. 
Indented  servants,  i.  38,  212. 

Indians  in  Carolina,  ii.  254,  274,  289,  301  ; in  South 
Carolina,  321,  334;  in  New  York,  9,  39-48;  in 
Maryland,  164.  See  Five  Nations. 

Iroquois,  ii.  89-99. 

Irving,  Washington,  ii.  16,  22,  23,  57. 

Jefferson,  i.  86,  97,  104,  109,  112. 

Jesuits,  ii.  168,  364. 

Johnson,  Reverdy,  ii.  248. 

Johnson,  Sir  William,  ii.  95-98. 

Joppa,  town  of,  ii.  243. 

Kennedy,  J.  P.,  i.  96;  ii.  249. 

Key,  Francis  S.,  ii.  250. 

Kidd,  Captain,  ii.  279-283. 

Kieft,  William,  ii.  25,  32,  36,  39,  40,  42,  45,  48,  50,  52, 
60,  63. 

Kissing  in  the  street,  i.  178,  179. 

Knight,  Mrs.,  ii.  141. 

Lecture  day  in  Massachusetts,  i.  138  ; in  Conneflicut,  275. 
Leisler,  Jacob,  ii.  80-94. 

Liberty  of  conscience,  i.  148-151,  307,  309,  310;  ii. 
215-229. 

Lincklaen,  John,  ii.  144. 


386 


Index 


Literature  in  Massachusetts,  i.  220,  224-242. 

Locke,  John,  ii.  268,  269,  272,  304. 

Madison,  James,  i.  15,  60,  63,  78,  104,  109,  no,  112. 

Marshall,  John,  i.  15,  60,  63,  78,  86,  104,  no. 

Martin,  Luther,  ii.  248. 

Maryland,  ii.  147—250;  charter  of,  154;  colonists  sail  for, 
159;  St.  Mary’s  founded,  163;  relations  with  the 
Indians,  164;  Protestants  protedled,  165;  Clayborne 
rebellion,  167,  168;  toleration,  169;  seized  by  the 
Puritans,  174,  175,  178;  the  Baltimores  restored, 
180;  life  in,  183-191;  towns  in,  192;  complaints 
against  government  of,  195  ; seized  again  by  the 
Puritans,  199;  becomes  a royal  province,  203;  St. 
Mary’s  abandoned,  204;  life  at  Annapolis,  206-211  ; 
high  life  in,  213  ; position  of  the  Roman  Catholics  in, 
216-229  i corruption  of  clergy  of  English  Church  in, 
230;  convifts,  231  ; restored  again  to  the  Baltimores, 
237  ; Baltimore  founded,  243. 

Massachusetts,  i.  117— 242;  contrast  to  Virginia,  117;  the 
two  colonies  of,  1 19;  Plymouth  colonists,  120;  the 
Puritans,  124;  their  charter,  127  ; separatism  of,  129  ; 
religious  oligarchy,  131;  independence  of,  132,  133; 
the  ministers’  power,  134;  intolerance,  136;  intense 
religious  feeling  in,  138  ; melancholy  of  the  people  of, 
1 41  ; banishment  of  Williams,  145  ; his  controversy 
with  Cotton  about  religious  liberty,  149;  banishment 
of  Mrs.  Hutchinson,  153;  the  Quakers,  158;  charter 
annulled,  1 62  ; the  Salem  witchcraft,  1 65  ; Judge  Sew- 
all,  173  ; funerals,  173  ; life  and  manners,  174;  town 
system,  177;  dress,  186;  new  life  introduced  by  the 
royal  governors  and  the  Church  of  England,  187  ; clubs 
and  card-playing,  191  ; Sir  Harry  Frankland,  193; 
humor  of  the  Puritans,  205  ; aristocracy,  208  ; Sab- 

387 


Index 


bath  laws,  209;  purity  of  Anglo-Saxon  stock,  21 1 ; 
seafaring  habits,  214;  education,  217  ; beginning  of 
Unitarianism,  222;  renaissance,  224;  literary  in- 
stinCts,  227;  characteristics  of  the  literature,  230; 
causes  of  its  decline,  232. 

Masting  in  New  Hampshire,  i.  326. 

Mather,  Cotton,  i.  166. 

Mecklenburg  resolutions,  ii.  263. 

Middleton,  ii.  295,  299,  320,  325,  337. 

Montgomery,  Sir  Robert,  ii.  347. 

Morals  in  colonial  times,  ii.  180,  283. 

More,  Hannah,  ii.  368. 

Negroes,  in  Virginia,  i.  36;  in  New  Jersey,  389;  plot  of, 
to  burn  New  York,  ii.  83;  in  Maryland,  235;  in 
South  Carolina,  308-315;  in  Georgia,  374. 

New  Hampshire,  i.  324-333;  settlement  of,  324;  pro- 
prietors of,  325;  united  with  Massachusetts,  326; 
masting  in,  326;  Scotch-Irish  in,  327;  life  in,  328; 
Indian  wars,  330;  grants  of,  334. 

New  Haven,  colony  of,  i.  243,  248;  intolerance  of,  248, 
250;  blue  laws  of,  251  ; united  to  Connecticut, 
256. 

New  Jersey,  i.  377-391;  character  of,  377;  Dutch  in, 
378  ; Swedes  in,  378  ; proprietary  grant  of,  379 ; 
divided  into  East  and  West,  379;  Danes  in,  379; 
Puritans  in,  380;  a royal  province,  385;  bad  govern- 
ment of,  386;  characteristics  of,  388,  390. 

New  York,  ii.  9—146;  importance  of,  10;  discovered  by 
Dutch,  11  ; superiority  of  English  title,  12;  charac- 
teristics of  the  Dutch,  13;  settlement  of,  19;  pa- 
troons,  20;  Van  Twiller,  25;  Kieft,  32;  the  Swedes 
on  the  Delaware,  36;  the  Dutch  on  the  Connecticut, 
38;  Indian  troubles,  39;  The  Twelve,  40;  massacre 
388 


Index 


of  the  Indians,  43  ; conquest  o,  the  Indians,  47  ; 
Stuyvesant,  50;  town  of  New  York,  53  ; life  among 
the  Dutch,  54;  bad  government,  61;  town  system, 
65  ; strained  relations  with  New  England,  66  ; seized 
by  the  English,  695  under  the  Duke  of  York,  76; 
government  seized  by  Leisler,  80 ; fear  of  Roman  Cath- 
olics, 84;  negro  plot,  85  ; effect  of  English  conquest, 
87;  the  Five  Nations,  89;  Sir  William  Johnson,  95; 
aristocracy,  100,  112;  slow  progress,  101  ; corruption, 
102;  the  Zenger  case,  109;  life  and  manners,  1133 
life  in  Albany,  115;  Mrs.  Grant’s  description  of 
life  at  Albany,  123;  her  description  of  life  among 
the  Schuylers,  128;  slowness  of  the  Dutch  in  the 
Revolution,  139;  evils  of  the  land  system,  140,  144; 
the  invasion  of  the  Yankees,  141  ; land  system  broken 
up,  145  ; the  Erie  Canal,  145. 

North  Carolina,  founding  of,  ii.  258  ; characteristics  of, 
261. 

Oglethorpe,  General,  ii.  85,  348;  enthusiasm  for  Georgia, 
353  ; sails  for  Georgia,  335  ; his  reception  in  England, 
359;  contest  with  Spaniards,  363-367. 

Patrick,  Daniel,  ii.  47. 

Patroons,  ii.  20-22,  29. 

Penn,  William,  i.  257,  325,  342,  354-365;  ii.  181,  182, 
196,  203,  219. 

Pennsylvania,  i.  340—376;  Swedes  in,  340;  miscellaneous 
population  of,  341;  Quakers,  342;  Germans,  344; 
Scotch-Irish,  346 ; Connecticut  people,  347  ; liberal 
opinions,  348;  prosperity  of,  350;  effect  of  disunited 
condition,  352;  life  in,  365;  aristocracy,  366. 

Philadelphia,  life  in,  i.  365-376. 

Pinckney,  Mrs.  Charles  C.,  ii.  321,  337. 

389 


Index 


Pinkney,  William,  ii.  248. 

Piracy  in  the  colonies,  ii.  274-285. 

Plymouth  colony,  i.  1 19-124. 

Pocahontas,  i.  21,  26. 

Ponce  de  Leon,  ii.  255. 

Prescott,  Colonel,  i.  294. 

Princeton  College,  i.  39. 

Printz,  Governor,  ii.  38,  49. 

Protestant  declaration  in  Maryland,  ii.  170. 

Puritanism,  decline  of,  i.  164,  213,  219. 

Puritans  in  Virginia,  i.  59,  63 ; love  of  independence, 
132-134;  their  ministers,  134;  intolerance  of,  136, 
139  ; love  of  discussion,  1 37  ; opposed  to  amusements, 
139;  melancholy  of,  140,  143,  176;  in  Maryland, 
ii.  170,  178.  See  Massachusetts. 

Putnam,  General,  i.  291-294. 

Quakers  in  Massachusetts,!.  158-161  ; in  Pennsylvania, 
342;  in  New  York,  ii.  64. 

Raleigh,  Sir  Walter,  i.  19;  ii.  256. 

Randolph,  Davies,  ii.  137;  Isham,  i.  109;  John,  i.  109, 
1 1 3 , 114,  1 1 5 , 261  ; Peyton,  104. 

Redemptioners  in  Virginia,  i.  38,  65;  in  New  England, 
212. 

Reformed  Church  of  Holland,  ii.  29,  64. 

Religious  liberty  in  Massachusetts,  i.  149;  in  Maryland,  ii. 
156 ; in  New  York,  29,  64;  in  Rhode  Island,  i.  310. 

Renaissance  in  Massachusetts,  i.  224. 

Rhode  Island,  i.  303-321  ; curious  people  in,  309;  re- 
ligious liberty  in,  310;  individualism  in,  311,  316; 
charters  of,  311-313  ; lack  of  unity,  314;  bounda- 
ries of,  317  ; commerce  of,  318;  slave-trade  in,  319; 
French  army  in,  319. 


390 


Index 


Robin,  Abbe,  i.  80,  1 8 8 , 260,  321,  322. 

Rochefoucauld,  i.  80,  88,  95;  ii.  137. 

Sabbath,  observance  of,  i.  209. 

Salem  witchcraft,  i.  165—172. 

Schuylers,  life  among  the,  128-139. 

Scotch-Irish  in  Virginia,  i.  67;  in  Carolina,  ii.  291,  303, 
307,  343;  in  New  Hampshire,  i.  327;  in  Pennsyl- 
vania, 346. 

Sewall,  Judge,  i.  141,  173,  174,  177. 

Seward,  William,  ii.  145. 

Simms,  William  Gilmore,  ii.  336. 

Slavery.  See  Negroes. 

Smith,  Captain  John,  i.  19,  21,  24,  26,  27,  29,  32,  36. 

South  Carolina,  ii.  263—346;  founding  of,  264;  early 
settlers,  265  ; a colony  of  one  town,  270;  rebellion  in, 
290 ; a royal  province,  298  ; development  of,  303  ; 
rice  introduced,  304;  favor  shown  by  British  govern- 
ment, 304-307,  316  ; slavery,  308— 315  ; slave  rebel- 
lion, 313;  aids  to  prosperity,  315  ; an  ideal  colony  ,316; 
life,  318-333;  position  of  women, 321,  340;  aris- 
tocracy, 338;  speculation,  339;  manufacturing,  340; 
nullification  and  secession,  341,  342;  in  the  Revolu- 
tion, 324—333;  second  period  of  prosperity,  334. 

Spaniards  entice  slaves  of  Carolina,  ii.  312;  their  contest 
for  Georgia,  312. 

St.  Mary’s  founded,  ii.  163;  abandoned,  204. 

Stark,  General,  i.  332. 

Stoddardism,  i.  298. 

Stone,  Governor,  ii.  169,  174-178. 

Stuyvesant,  Governor,  ii.  25,  50,  51,  61,  65,  66,  67,  70, 
75,  108,  109,  117. 

Sullivan,  General,  i.  333;  ii.  98. 

Surriage,  Agnes,  i.  193—204. 

391 


Index 


Swedes  on  the  Delaware  under  New  York,  ii.  63;  in 
Pennsylvania,  i.  340;  in  New  Jersey,  378. 

Taney,  Chief-Justice,  ii.  190,  245,  246. 

Teach,  Edward,  ii.  279,  283,  284. 

Tobacco  in  Virginia,  i.  32,  ill;  in  Maryland,  ii.  165, 
184,  185. 

Toleration  aft  of  Maryland,  ii.  169. 

Torture  in  New  York,  ii.  60. 

Towns  in  Virginia,  i.  36,  58;  in  New  England,  177;  in 
New  York,  ii.  51,  65;  in  Maryland,  192. 

Travellers  in  the  colonies,  i.  80. 


Underhill,  John,  ii.  47. 

Unitarianism  in  Massachusetts,  i.  221,  222,  224. 


Van  Rensselaer,  ii.  21-25,  50,  64,  93,  94,  99,  114, 

>45- 

Van  Twiller,  ii.  24-34,  48,  63,  103,  108. 

Vermont,  i.  33-39. 

Verrazzano,  ii.  9. 

Virginia,  i.  15-116;  ascendency  of,  15;  luxury,  16,  89; 
settlement  of,  17,  20;  disorders  among  early  settlers, 
23;  charafter  of  Smith,  25;  tobacco  culture,  32;  oc- 
cupations, 33;  first  prosperity,  35;  slavery,  36;  early 
life  in,  35;  towns,  35,  58;  representative  govern- 
ment, 40-42  ; opposes  Cromwell,  43  ; Bacon’s  rebel- 
lion, 44;  evil  governors,  56;  life  and  manners,  68; 
class  distinctions,  70  ; amusements,  71-79  ; travellers’ 
opinions  of,  88;  gayety,  91  ; fondness  for  dress,  92; 
British  men-of-war  in,  93;  rudeness  of  life,  94,  96; 
lower  classes,  97 ; gouging,  97  ; causes  of  decline, 
102,  III,  1 1 5,  1 16;  education  in,  104,  109. 

392 


Index 


Walloons,  ii.  19. 

Wampum,  ii.  18. 

Washington,  i.  15,  17,  63,  64,  77,  80,  83,  84,  85,  87, 
91,  105,  no. 

Wesley,  Charles  and  John,  ii.  370-373. 

West  Jersey,  i.  381,  382. 

Whale  fishery,  i.  277. 

Whitefield,  i.  60,  199,  268,  302;  ii.  373. 

William  and  Mary  College,  i.  104,  107. 

Williams,  Roger,  i.  133,  137,  145,  148,  150,  154,  158, 
303,  308,  309,  3 1 1 . 

Williamsburg,  i.  59. 

Winthrop,  Governor,  i.  137,  140,  141,  252,  268. 
Witchcraft.  See  Salem  Witchcraft. 

Worley,  Richard,  ii.  285,  286. 

Yale  College,  i.  263. 

York,  Duke  of,  ii.  69,  77. 

Zenger,  John  Peter,  ii.  109. 


Provid?nc«  , R*.  I 


917.3 


F536-9  v.  2 563722 


